


Mercy On My Heart

by tumblruserpailylove



Category: Wynonna Earp (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Angels & Demons, F/F, Guardian Angels, Protective Wynonna Earp, Self-Sacrifice, Soulmates, Trolls, lots of blood, lots of fainting, some good and some bad, some wynhaught moments, soul sucking demons, wynonna being a sass master, wynonna cursing, wynonna drinking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-11
Updated: 2018-08-11
Packaged: 2019-06-24 11:28:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 12
Words: 60,471
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15629778
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tumblruserpailylove/pseuds/tumblruserpailylove
Summary: Nicole Haught has been plagued with dreams that seemed to be from another person's life. When she gets called out of the blue to a place she's never been by a man she's never met things start to get more complicated than she could have ever imagined. Sometimes fulfilling your destiny comes at a heavy price. (This story was inspired by the song Mercy by Shawn Mendes)





	1. Tell me that I'm not crazy

_“I’m not really sure people remember their own births but I am fairly certain I can remember mine. It started when I was three. At least I think it did. I have a vague memory of having a memory at that age. Maybe I can remember things I shouldn’t because I’ve read kids don’t recall anything before the age of five. But I swear I do. Since that day I have been haunted with the memory of my own birth. It comes at random times, the flash of the memory and not the actual memory itself. It’s like I remember that I had that memory but I can’t fully say I am remembering it personally. Along with the flashes of the memory of my own birth come random memories of events in my life that never happened. Like reverse deja vu, perhaps? I am fully experiencing these events via memories yet I don’t recall when they actually took place in my life. But the memories are real. They have to be. How else do you explain the pain that comes with them? The vivid, pulsing, throbbing pain that ignites every nerve as these memories course through me without warning…”_

 

The doctor paused his reading just then. He blinked down at the journal he had been reading from as if he were trying to process the words. He took as much time as he wished to let it bounce around his head, analyzing it and processing it, before he finally looked up from the scribbled writing.

 

Nicole Haught sat nervously on the little couch across from the man while chewing her lip and pulling at her fingers where her hands crossed on her lap. Her eyes hadn’t moved from watching the man’s every little reaction as he read through her journal. One of the journals she had been urged to start keeping when she was twelve to help, as her mother had worded it, “tone down her imagination.”

 

“So?” Nicole’s voice quivered in an inquiry to the man’s thoughts.

 

He cleared his throat. He looked back at the journal again, which he had folded closed, and gave another nod. “It seems you might have a lot of repressed memories that are starting to flood out due to the death of your parents. Have you experienced any childhood trauma that could have resulted in hiding memories that, from all accounts, are full of pain?”

 

“No” Nicole shook her head feverishly. Her parents were incredible. They doted on her every need and want as a child. She was their world. They had tried for ten years to become pregnant and just when they had been about to give up, Nicole popped into their lives. They had wanted nothing more than to be parents and they treated her as such. She couldn’t remember either of them even raising a voice at her. “My parents were angels.”

 

The man nodded again. He looked down at the journal once more. He turned it over in his hands as if trying to look for some sort of hint as to what he had just read meant. Then he looked back to the girl across from him “How many of these do you have?”

 

“A couple dozen” Nicole motioned to the school bag near her feet that held all of her journals. She had recorded very single weird dream-like memory. She had given as much detail as possible including the pain that came with each one. The vivid, paralyzing pain. “I can leave them with you if you would like?”

 

The man gave another nod. He stood now and reached out for her to hand over the bag filled with journals. He wondered if they would all be as perplexing as the first bit he had read.

 

Nicole stood as well, lifting the bag with her and handing it over to the man. She eyed him carefully and wondered if he would believe her. Better yet, she wondered if he would be able to help her. She knew she wasn’t, as some would say, messed up in the head. She was brilliant, actually. I.Q. testing had told her so. Several times. She could have gone to any college in the world with her test scores the way they were and yet she had chosen to zoom through the police academy instead. Her parents, though supportive as always, were a little disappointed. They didn’t understand why she would choose a life of public service instead of studying to cure diseases or advancing technology. But she had always been kind to others and they had relented in trying to persuade her to do more than being a simple cop.

 

“I am going to go over these and we can discuss them in detail next week, Miss Haught.” The man motioned to the bag he now held and gave her a calm smile. “Until then, please continue to record any of these memories that might come to you.”

 

“You got it” Nicole gave a small smile. There was hope. This was the first doctor that hadn’t recommended antipsychotic medications right off the bat. “I will see you next week.”

 

The man gave a wave as Nicole headed from his office. He gave his head a shake and looked down now at the bag full of what he imagined were going to be all enthralling journals. He moved to his desk and as he sat he pushed the call button for his secretary.

 

“Yes, Dr. Brant?” The female voice came from the speaker.

 

“Can you push my afternoon appointments, please? Something has come up.” He flipped open the journal he had been reading and a smile flickered on his lips. Finally something different than what usually walked into his office.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

“So how was the quack?” Sydney, Nicole’s oldest and dearest friend-turned-roommate asked over dinner that night.

 

“He isn’t a quack. Being a doctor for mental health is an under appreciated field, if you ask me” Nicole rolled her eyes at her friend. Though she had never once thought Nicole was a weirdo for what she swore she experienced, she did like to tease her now and then.

 

Sydney rolled her eyes too. Nicole was so touchy sometimes “So what did he say?”

 

“He’s going to read my journals and we are going to discuss them next week” Nicole shrugged it off as if it were no big deal. In reality she was excited. This doctor was the first to give her a chance to figure out what was happening instead of just assuming she was damaged in the head.

 

“No drugs this time?” Sydney seemed genuinely interested now.

 

“Nope. He didn’t even question my sanity.” Nicole smiled and reached for her water. “He did ask if I had any childhood trauma that I repressed, though.”

 

Sydney left out a scoffed laugh at that “You? Yeah right. You had the perfect childhood.”

 

“That’s what I said” Nicole agreed with a nod once she swallowed her water. “But he thinks that my parents’ death might have triggered them.”

 

“If that’s true then how do you have years of journals full of memories that you wrote down before they died?” Sydney shook her head at that.

 

“I think once he reads through some of the older ones he will realize they can’t be repressed.” Nicole agreed to the point her friend was making.

 

Both girls fell silent for a few moments as they mulled over this new doctor. Sydney was fiercely protective of her friend now that her parents were gone. Nicole was one of the kindest people she had ever known and she did not want her being taken advantage of now that her only protection was gone. The Haughts had loved their daughter and done anything for her but they had also kind of sheltered her. Up until they had died a few months earlier Nicole had still been living with them. She was worried that Nicole would be run over by the real world.

 

“Got plans tonight?” Nicole finally broke the silence as she stood from the table with her empty plate and moved to the sink to rinse it off.

 

“Going to a frat party” Sydney said with a smirk. “You should come.”

 

“Pass” Nicole shook her head and dropped the plate into the dishwasher. “I think I am going to-”

 

“Study and pass out” Sydney finished her thought before Nicole could. She rolled her eyes and stood up from the table now too. “You are so lame, dude. How are you going to meet anyone if all you do is study for your Sheriff exam and go to bed before ten?”

 

“Midnight” Nicole corrected her friend. She shook her head unphased by the criticism “I usually pass out around midnight. Besides” She sighed and looked at Sydney now “Partying has never been my thing. Remember when I went with you to Freshman Frontiers? I spent the entire night either taking care of you, random drunk girls, or breaking up fights. I am a cop at heart, Syd. I go to parties and all I see are shenanigans and people who need help.”

 

Sydney rolled her eyes again and stood from the table as well “If I hadn’t known you since we were nine I would hate you so much.” She smirked then moved across the kitchen, slapping Nicole’s ass playfully on the way by. “Well if you change your mind let me know.”

 

Nicole growled at the slap to her ass. She knew Sydney hated when she did that. That was exactly why she did it. “Be careful and don’t drive home drunk!”

 

“Yes, Officer!” Sydney called from her bedroom where she had headed in order to start to get ready.

 

Nicole shook her head and moved toward her desk in her own bedroom. She was going to nail the Sheriff exam on the first try. She was determined to become the youngest Sheriff in the history of her precinct.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

_“Wynonna, no!” Waverly yelled in terror before leaping in front of her sister to protect her from the bullet that was fired her way. It hit her straight in the heart and she fell face down in the dirt with a sickening thud._

 

_“Shit, babygirl!” Wynonna ran over to her fallen sister. She rolled her over carefully, tears running from her eyes and blurring her vision as she tried to examine her sister. “She’s not breathing” She choked out softly._

 

_Silence. Wynonna breathed puffs of air into her sister. Waverly laid there motionless. The only sounds were soft sobs between desperate breaths being pushed into the motionless girl’s lungs._

 

_Suddenly, only two minutes later, but what had felt like an eternity to Wynonna, Waverly gasped for air and sat upright._

 

Nicole shot up from where she had been laying on the floor. Wait, how did she get on the floor? The thought was a fleeting one as she drew in painful breaths. Her lungs felt like they were opening for the first time. Her heart thundered against her ribs with a shooting pain accompanying each beat. She looked around completely confused as to where she was. Then she saw Sydney, tears streaking down her face, looking as white as a ghost.

 

“Wh-...” Nicole reached back and rubbed a spot on her head that was sore as well. “What happened?”

 

Sydney shook her head. She stared at her friend breathlessly for a few long heartbeats before stammering out “You were dead.”

 

“What?” Nicole repeated, the heavy sigh that came with the word hurt her chest.

 

“Dead” Sydney repeated. “No heartbeat. No breathing. Dead.”

 

“How?” Nicole shook her head. She looked around her bedroom as if she still didn’t recognize where she was. She tried to remember what she had been doing. Studying. At her desk. How did she end up on the floor? “Are you sure?”

 

“I know how to check a pulse, Nicole” Sydney sniffled and wiped a few remaining tears that still trickled down her cheeks away. “I called an ambulance.”

 

“No, I’m fine. I will-” She went to stand but was stopped as pain shot through her chest, ceasing everything up like a vice grip had taken hold of her.

 

“You’re going to the hospital, Nicole. Your heart stopped. You were dead” Sydney’s tone was firm. She pointed at her friend “Do not move.”

 

“I’m-”

 

“No!” Sydney shouted then hurried off to get some things to take with her to the hospital once the ambulance arrived.

 

Nicole groaned softly as her hand moved to rub at the spot on her chest that hurt the most. The spot right over her heart. Her head was reeling. Her random memories had never been this intense. They had never felt the pain so strongly in her body once she had woken up. She had never seen such vivid details of the events, never heard speaking, never heard names. This memory had been different. She was almost convinced she had just experienced someone named Waverly nearly die.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

“See?” Nicole looked at Sydney who stood at the side of her exam bed as the doctor noted her vital signs. “By all accounts I am fine.”

 

“You were dead” Sydney said again. She looked at the doctor “She was dead. For at least two minutes. I mean that is when I found her. Who knows how long she had been lying there before I got home.”

 

The doctor nodded then looked at Nicole, speaking in a calm tone “Miss Haught, were you doing any drugs this evening?”

 

“No!” Nicole sounded completely offended. “I never have. I’ve drank only a handful of times in my life. That’s it. I am a cop, I can’t do drugs. Not that I would ever want to.”

 

The doctor nodded and wrote down her notes quickly. She smiled back up to Nicole once she was done. She spoke still gently, not wanting to sound as if she were accusing her of anything “We will run a few tests. A tox screen, EKG, and CAT scan. We will figure out what happened. I’d really like to keep you on a 24 hour observation as well.”

 

“I have to work” Nicole shook her head. “My Sheriff exam is the day after tomorrow.”

 

“You will be out in time for the exam as long as everything comes back clean” The doctor reassured her. “So sit tight” She gave Nicole another soft smile then looked over to Sydney as well. “You’re welcome to bring her a few things from home while she stays overnight with us. That way she can study here while we awaits the test results.”

 

Sydney gave a nod to that. She watched the doctor leave the exam room before looking back to Nicole. It was nearly three in the morning and she was exhausted. She could only imagine how her friend, who had been dead, felt. “Try and get some rest before they come take you for your tests. I am going to go get you the study guide from home and grab you some food to eat once you are done being tested.”

 

“Syd, I-m”

 

“If you say you’re fine one more time I’m going to scream. You were dead, Nicole.” She cut off an attempt at a rebuttal from Nicole and shook her head “Dead. So stay put. Try and relax. I will be back shortly.”

 

Nicole had only ever seen the fire that Sydney’s eyes held in that moment once before. It had been the day her parents had died and someone had scoffed at Nicole’s crying in line at the grocery store once they had left the morgue after identifying the bodies. She had nearly taken the guy’s head off then. Nicole knew it meant that Sydney was serious. So she gave a nod to her friend and relented her determination to convince everyone she was fine. “Don’t be gone long.”

 

Sydney shook her head then leaned down and kissed the side of Nicole’s face, just above her cheek. She gave her friend one more look over and it was clear to see that fire had faded from her eyes. It had been replaced with worry. She had seen her friend laying completely lifeless. That changes a person.

 

Nicole watched her friend leave and once she was gone she drew in a deep breath. She laid back against the exam bed and closed her eyes. She was absolutely exhausted. Her chest still hurt. She could still so vividly see the terror in the girl called Wynonna’s eyes as she looked down at her lifeless body. Well, not really her lifeless body. Waverly’s lifeless body.

 

She shook the images from her head. She would have to remember to write this all down once Sydney got back with some paper. Until then she would try to sleep. She had a feeling she was still in for a long night.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

_“Finally” The voice of a man Nicole didn’t recognize greeted her as she walked into a room she had never seen before. She looked around with confusion in her eyes but before she could ask anything the man motioned to the chair across from his desk “Have a seat Miss Haught.”_

 

_“Nicole” She said with a nod as she followed the command and sat. She was taking in where she was and after a moment she looked back at the man. She cocked her head to the side and asked “Am I in a police station?”_

 

_The man gave a soft, warm laugh and nodded “Of all the questions you could ask, that’s the first one that comes to mind?”_

 

_“Comes to mind, no” Nicole let out a laugh. “Easiest to put into words, yes.” She eyed the room a bit more then turned her focus to the man. He was older. He had a bit of a short scruffy beard around his mouth that had graying strands peppered through it. His hair was colored the same, combed neatly with a part down one side. Not too neatly, though. But not shabby either. She smiled at the man who was watching her dissect him and shrugged “I’m sorry but who are you?”_

 

_“My name is Randy Nedley” The man spoke gently. “I have been waiting for you.”_

 

_“Me?” Nicole seemed surprised by that. “Why me?”_

 

_“Long story short I’ve been watching over you your entire life” The man again spoke with an even tone. When he saw the confusion and worry seep into Nicole’s features he continued quickly yet still calmly “There are celestial powers at work in you, Nicole. I don’t have a lot of time as you are going to wake up soon. But believe me when I say it is of the utmost importance that you get to Purgatory.”_

 

_“Hell?” Nicole perked an eyebrow. “Wait, we’re in Hell?”_

 

_“Purgatory” Nedley corrected her. “It’s in Canada and like I said before you need to get yourself there as soon as possible.”_

 

_“Canada? Why?” Nicole was growing even more confused. “Wake up? What do you mean? What is going on.”_

 

_“Purgatory, Nicole. It’s your destiny.”_

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

Nicole’s eyes shot open. She blinked a few times to focus them under the still blaringly bright hospital lights overhead. She looked to her left and saw Sydney laying in the small chair beside her bed. She let out a heavy sigh and cleared her throat “Syd.”

 

Sydney shifted positions but didn’t wake.

 

“Sydney” Nicole said a little louder.

 

Her eyes shot open and Sydney looked around. That is when she saw Nicole awake and looking at her. She smiled and let out a yawn as she straightened in the chair “You’re up. How are you feeling?”

 

“Fine” Nicole brushed it off then spoke quietly “I have to go to Canada.”

 

“What?” Sydney laughed as she scooted closer to the bed with the chair now. “Do they have you on some pain meds or what?”

 

“No, I don’t think so” Nicole shook her head. Then she looked at both of her arms to check for I.V.s. When she saw none she nodded “No I’m not on drugs. But I have to go, Syd.”

 

“What?” She repeated, this time sounding less amused and more confused.

 

“Purgatory” Nicole continued very matter-of-fact like. “I have to go asap.”

 

“You just died and you’re in the hospital to figure out why. You have your Sheriff exam tomorrow morning. Actually…” Syd looked at her watch and shook her head “This morning. In like five hours, Nicole. You can’t leave.”

 

“I have to” Nicole said sternly. “I should be out of here by six. Will you go home and pack for me?”

 

“You are absolutely out of your damn mind” Sydney said with a quick shake of her head. “I think you need a psych consultation. You must have fallen right on your head.”

 

“All of my tests came back clear, Syd. I am fine physically.” Nicole sat up now in bed. The pain in her chest was still there but it was much less than it had been just hours earlier. “I can’t explain it, Syd, all I know is I have to go. I have to go now. It’s like…” She motioned toward her chest and stomach area randomly, gesturing vaguely to herself “...it’s inside me. It’s just this feeling I have. Like I am meant to be there. Like it’s destiny.”

 

“Destiny?” Sydney perked an eyebrow, staring at her friend in total disbelief.

 

“Look I know it sounds crazy, Syd. I know everything about my dreams or memories or whatever has always sounded crazy to you but you have never once questioned them. You have just accepted them as part of who I am and I can’t thank you enough for that. But why would you start doubting me now?” Nicole almost sounded wounded at the last of her words. “I have never lied to you before. Why won’t you believe me now?”

 

Sydney’s heart broke a little. Nicole almost sounded betrayed at the fact that she was not going along with this plan right away. The girl had been through so much in her life with her random memory dreams and yet she had always stayed positive no matter how many people called her crazy. This girl deserves all good things in life. Maybe this was a weird coping mechanism to help Nicole deal with the death of her parents. She didn’t understand it but she also knew Nicole and knew she was serious. So she gave in with a nod “Okay. I’ll go pack some things for you. But I can’t go with you.”

 

“I know” Nicole said with a nod, relief flooding her features as her friend gave into her wishes.

 

“But as soon as I am done with school I am so there” Sydney added with a smile.

 

“If you can’t it’s okay” Nicole said seriously. “We will keep in touch.”

 

Sydney wanted to argue. She wanted to tell her friend how she would die to protect Nicole. She wanted to tell her that being apart might kill her. But the look in her eyes told her that Nicole had no doubt in her ability to survive out there on her own. Nicole had never been afraid of a challenge so why would she start now. So instead of arguing she just reached out and took Nicole’s hand “I’ll miss the Hell out of you.”

 

“Hell” Nicole smirked “Purgatory. I see what you did there.”

 

Sydney laughed, nodding a bit “Who else is going to appreciate my puns when you’re gone?”

 

“No one else. Ever” Nicole bit her lip, trying to be strong for her friend as she gave her hand a squeeze. “I am irreplaceable. Don’t you ever forget that.”

 

“Never” Sydney shook her head as a tear slid down her cheek.

 

“I love you, Syd.” Nicole whispered softly. “And thank you.”

 

“Just doing my job, kid” Sydney said with a wink. The two friends embraced in a tight hug before exchanging a few more sad pleasantries about how much they cared for one another. Then Sydney left to pack a few of Nicole’s things for her.

 

Nicole’s heart was pounding with excitement. She wasn’t sure if she was scared or thrilled for her new adventure. She did know for sure that she hadn’t a single doubt that it was meant for her. She would never be able to explain it but she could feel it in every nerve ending in her body. Whether it had been a dream or a vision she knew the man named Nedley was serious. Her destiny awaited her in Purgatory.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

Having never moved homes in her life, Nicole was pleasantly surprised at the ease with which she had accomplished her move to Purgatory. She found a place the same morning she packed up her truck with the bare essentials she would need to start her new life. She had an interview with the police department before she had even reached the halfway point of her drive to Canada. She never got lost even when her gps was down on her phone. She never even got close to running out of gas. She even hit every green light on the way to her new apartment once she reached town. Everything went as flawlessly as it could have. It really helped put her at ease and enforced within her the feeling that this was her destiny.

 

She had just finished unloading the last of her boxes from the back of her pickup truck when she caught something out of the corner of her eye through her third story apartment window. She set the box down and moved to the window to get a better look. In the middle of the street, outside of some place called Shorty’s, she saw two men shouting. She couldn’t make out what they were saying but it was more than obvious they were about to start throwing fists. Nicole scrambled over to her pile of boxes, throwing flaps open randomly, searching for her gun.

 

Once she found it she rushed back to the window. The men were tangled now in a clumsy pushing match. She checked that the safety on her gun was in place before turning to run down and break up the fight. She was stopped, though, when out of the bar came a tiny figure holding a shotgun that was almost too big for the person. There was a shout from the tiny person and a warning shot was let go into the sky. This stopped the men’s tussling immediately. The tiny person shouted a few more things and the men hung their heads in shame and parted ways.

 

Nicole smirked. Whoever that was definitely didn’t take any shit. She would have to stop in and meet this ferocious person. She was staring down at the scene still, taking in what she had just witnessed, when the person with the shotgun looked up at her window. It was a split second but they made eye contact and the smaller person smiled. That was when it hit Nicole so hard it nearly knocked her breathless. The tiny person was a woman. A strong, vocal, not shit-taking, beautiful woman. She had never seen anyone like that in her entire life.

 

Before Nicole could gather herself the woman had gone back into Shorty’s. Nicole’s heart was racing. Her hands were shaking. She had just seen the most amazing woman. Yet something inside her was calm too. Like she had just caught sight of an old friend. Everything inside her was telling her she had to know the woman with the shotgun.

 

Just then a yawn ripped through her. She would meet the girl tomorrow. For now she needed rest. Her interview at the police department was in the morning and she wanted to be sharp. So with a heavy sigh she rummaged through her boxes before finding something to sleep in. Once she changed she unrolled her sleeping bag and crawled inside. The floor wasn’t too bad but she did wish she could have fit her bed in her truck. “All replaceable” she had said to herself when she decided to get rid of her furniture that morning.

 

As she settled into her sleeping bag and shut her eyes her body relaxed rather quickly. She was in a strange place with no friends and no idea why she was there. Yet she felt completely at ease. She was where she was meant to be, she had not one single doubt about it. She just had to figure out why she was meant to be here. That, she would come to find out, was a story more complicated than anyone could imagine.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	2. I'd drive through the night just to be near you, baby

“Hi, I’m here for an interview” Nicole said with a smile to the young man that was behind the front desk of the police station. 

 

The guy barely looked up from where he was typing something up. 

 

This caused an eyebrow to raise on Nicole’s forehead and she cleared her throat to speak a little more sharply. “Excuse me?”

 

“I’ll be with you momentarily. If you would like you can start filing your report on one of those papers” The guy motioned to a pile of clipboards that had pens tied to them.

 

“No, I don’t need to file a report. My name is Nicole Haught and I am here for an interview. I talked to someone yesterday on the phone.”

 

“Haught?” A man walking by heard the name and stopped. He was a plain dressed man, as in he was not in a police uniform, who approached the desk where the useless guy sat and offered Nicole a smile “I’m Special Agent Dolls. I was the one you spoke to yesterday.”

 

“Detective Dolls!” Nicole let out a relieved sigh and smiled as her hand stretched out to offer it for Dolls to shake. “Yes, thank you so much for seeing me so quickly. I really got lucky that there was an opening on your squad.”

 

“Seems like destiny, doesn’t it?” Dolls said with a smile as he shook Nicole’s hand gently. “The Sheriff’s office is just over there” He half turned away from Nicole to point over his left shoulder to the door. He then looked back and smiled “Go ahead and settle in. He will be over in a few minutes.”

 

“Thank you again” Nicole said genuinely. She moved across the police department toward the office door she had been directed into. She sat on the chair and set down the folder she had brought with all of her credentials inside it. As she looked around she got a funny feeling she had been in this room before. It looked way too familiar. Before she could place it, though, she heard a chillingly familiar voice that sent a shiver up her spine.

 

“Miss Haught. I have been waiting for you” Randy Nedley came into the office, pushing the door shut behind him, and moving around his desk.

 

As soon as Nicole’s eyes landed on the face of the man that had told her she needed to get to Purgatory she felt her heart skip several beats. She was dumbfounded. She felt a little numb. How was she looking into the eyes of a man she thought she had dreamed into being.

 

Nedley gave a soft laugh at the look on Nicole’s face. He gave a nod of agreement, knowing exactly what she must be thinking, and kicked back in his chair slightly “I know it’s a little hard to believe but this is real.”

 

“I had a dream about you” Nicole stammered out. Then she realized that probably sounded weird and that she might have just accidentally sounded like a pervert to her new potential boss and she shook her head “Not like an inappropriate dream. Just a regular one where we talked.”

 

Nedley gave a soft chuckle and straightened up in his chair now. He folded his hands on the top of his desk and gave his head a shake “Just relax, Nicole.”

 

Nicole nodded and drew in a slow breath. She held it for just a moment in an attempt to calm herself down. After releasing it slowly she offered a meek smile to the man “Can I start over?”

 

“No need” Nedley waved his hand as if brushing away the sentiment. “I am sure you have a lot of questions.” Seeing Nicole nod, Nedley smiled and continued without letting her ask anything. “I am going to start with the biggest question in the room. Yes you saw me in a dream. But it wasn’t a dream at all.”

 

“It wasn’t?” Nicole perked an eyebrow slightly. Now she was really confused.

 

“It was…” Nedley paused and the look on his face showed her was contemplating how to word it. After thinking it over a moment he nodded and continued “...kind of like a video call.”

 

“What?” Nicole huffed out a laugh as her jaw dropped open a little. She couldn’t tell if this man was messing with her or not. 

 

“It’s a little hard to explain. I have a lot to tell you and there is a lot you will discover over time. But you and I are connected. In fact, you are connected to more than just me.”

 

“Wait, what?” Nicole’s head shook now as she stared blankly at the man. She honestly could not pin down if he was being truthful to her or if it was an elaborate prank to see if the new girl could handle being teased at work.

 

“You’ve had weird dreams your whole life, right?” Nedley said very matter-of-fact like.

 

Nicole’s heart skipped a beat. She blinked once then nodded “How did you know?”

 

“That’s your connection” Nedley said softly. He lowered his voice and looked around as if someone might be listening before he continued “Some of us have one, some of us have a few, but we all have the connections.”

 

“Connections?” Nicole shook her head. He had to be messing with her somehow. Maybe he did a background check and saw she had seen a few Psychiatrists and inquired about why she was seeing them. How else would he know?

 

“You’re one of mine” Nedley said with a smile. When all he got back from Nicole was an unblinking stare he continued. “Have you ever heard of guardian angels?”

 

Nicole nodded just once.

 

“I guess you can say we are guardian angels. We are put on Earth to protect others from harm. How else do you explain your innate need to help others?”

 

Nicole just shrugged and gave her head another shake. She thought it over for a moment. She had always been totally helpful to others. Her mom often called her an angel sent to save her. She just thought that was because of how hard they had tried to have a kid before her. As she remembered her mother calling her that she shook her head and spoke finally “If I am an angel then I failed or something because my parents are dead.”

 

“You weren’t sent here for them” Nedley said calmly. 

 

“Then who?” Nicole was surprisingly not upset to hear she had not been meant to protect her parents. She should have been upset, right? She would have to think more on that later because Nedley spoke again.

 

“That you have to figure out yourself” Nedley continued in his calm demeanor. “Like I said, some of us have more than one.”

 

Nicole nodded. Somehow she was alright with all of this information. It was weird, sure, and totally unexpected but she wasn’t the slightest bit unnerved by it. It made more sense than repressed childhood memories due to trauma.

 

Nedley watched Nicole mull it all over. He wasn’t at all surprised that she was taking it so well. He had, after all, been watching her for the majority of her life.

 

There were a large amount of questions swimming around Nicole’s mind and the more she processed the more questions came to life. She would get to those. For now only one stood out like a sore thumb “Why did I have to be here?”

 

“Destiny” Nedley repeated the reasoning he had used in their, as he had put it, video call. Before Nicole could ask what that meant he pushed onward “I’m not gonna be on Earth forever, Nicole. This place, Purgatory I mean, is full of things that are the exact opposite of angels and someone needs to be around to protect the humans that live in this town. Now whether they are one of our connections or not, our main objective as angels is to protect all humans. So…” He motioned around to the office where they sat then smiled as he looked back to Nicole “One day I plan on passing this all off to you.”

 

“Me?” Nicole looked around now as if soaking in the grandity of what Nedley had just said. She shook her head in disbelief now and let out a laugh “You want me to be Sheriff?”

 

Nedley couldn’t help but laugh at that. Nicole still thought in the simplicity of human thoughts. That would change over time but for now it was refreshing. “It’s much more than being Sheriff, Nicole. You’d be in charge of protecting the humans and casting out the evil that resides here.”

 

“Evil?” Nicole perked an eyebrow now as she fixed a more serious look on Nedley.

 

He nodded just once “Evil. You’ll soon learn how things run around here and I will be here to help guide you along. But once I am gone you’ll be in charge.”

 

Nicole, for reasons she didn’t understand, understood what Nedley meant. She just did. She got it as if it were a fact she had known her entire life. She gave the man a nod and smiled “So that means I got the job?”

 

Nedley, again amused at her simplicity of thinking, laughed “The job was always yours, Miss Haught. You can start tomorrow.” He stood up now and offered his hand out for a shake. 

 

Nicole shot up from where she was sitting and grabbed his hand. She gave it an excited shake and smiled from ear to ear “Thank you so much, I won’t let you down.”

 

“I know you won’t” The man said as his hand slid from Nicole’s. “Take today to walk around town and familiarize yourself with where everything is at. Write down any questions that come up and we will go over them as progress allows.”

 

“I do have one more quick question” Nicole interjected quickly to stop Nedley’s movement toward his office door. When the man lifted a questioning eyebrow she smiled almost shyly “Last night I saw a fight in the street outside my apartment window. I was about to go break it up when this woman came busting out of Shorty’s with a shotgun and handled it. Do you by chance know who that was? I just got this feeling I definitely want her on my side.”

 

Nedley smirked at that. He knew it had to be one of the Earp girls. They ran Shorty’s and neither of them took shit from the drunk creeps who caused trouble there. “That would be one of the Earp girls.”

 

“Earp?” Nicole perked an eyebrow curiously.

 

“Yes, Earp” Nedley laughed and opened his office door now that Nicole was no longer half blocking his path. “The same Earp you are thinking. Wild West gunslinger. They are his descendants and are just as lethal with a gun.”

 

Nicole gave an impressed nod. She had a lot to process but somehow the fact that Wyatt Earp’s descendants actually lived in the town she had just moved to was the most exciting thing she was taking away from the conversation she had just had. “Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow?”

 

“I’ll be here” Nedley nodded then motioned for Nicole to head out of his office. He watched the girl go and gave an amused shake of his head. She had so much to learn.

 

Nicole made her way out of the police station rather quickly. The station was settled a half a block away from Shorty’s and a block from her apartment so she had walked to her interview. She had intended to stop by at Shorty’s on her way back home regardless of how her interview had gone but now there was excitement in her step. She wanted to meet a real life actual Earp!

 

She reached the heavy wood doors of Shorty’s and grabbed the handle to pull it open. She frowned when she was met with resistance. She took a step back and examined the outside of the building as she looked for business hours. None were posted. She did happen to read that the Shorty’s sign designated the business as a saloon. That explained the drunk men fighting the night before.

 

She moved to try and peek into one of the windows but when she realized that was pointless as the windows were made of frosted glass to prevent them from being seen through she let out a sigh and gave up. She would just have to check back later to see if they were open.

 

She turned now to cross the street back to her apartment but was caught by surprise by the small woman standing behind her. She jumped, having been given a bit of a fright, and let out a soft laugh “You scared me.”

 

“I’m sorry I didn’t mean to” The woman spoke gently yet her face held a suspicion as she eyed the tall red head in front of her. “Is there something I can help you with?”

 

“Oh I was just…” Nicole motioned behind her toward the doors and shrugged “I am new in town and I saw your establishment from my apartment window and I thought I’d drop in and see what y’all had to offer.”

 

“Well we ain’t open yet” The woman grumbled softly. She stepped by Nicole and started digging in her pocket for the keys to the door. “Come back tonight. There is a bull riding competition. Prize money for the winner.”

 

Nicole nodded and she knew right away this woman was not the one she had seen the night before. Even if it had been dark and she was three floors up, Nicole could tell this was not her. The other girl had been, well, electric. Something about her, even from afar, had intoxicated Nicole. “Sounds like fun” She finally mumbled out. “I will have to drop by.”

 

When the woman finally found her key she stuffed it in the lock and began to turn it. She paused when she still felt Nicole behind her and turned to look over her shoulder. She perked an eyebrow at the girl in silent questioning of what she wanted.

 

“I’m sorry” Nicole stepped back now. She tried to smile at the woman as she slowly backed away “I’m Nicole, by the way. Nicole Haught. I just moved here and-”

 

“You already said that” The woman mumbled.

 

“I start at the police station tomorrow so I look forward to protecting you and your establishment.” Nicole motioned to the building and tried to smile.

 

This, for some reason, softened the woman up. Maybe it was because she realized Nicole wasn’t one of the thugs that hung around town. “My name is Gus” she said with a smile. She eyed the nervous looking woman for a moment and nodded before finishing with the lock on the door. She pushed it open then paused before stepping inside “Your first drink will be on me tonight as a welcome to town gift, Officer.”

 

This made Nicole smile. She nodded happily and gave a little wave “Nice to meet you Gus. I am sure you will be seeing a lot of me.” She waved at the woman again then motioned to the apartment building across the street “I’m just gonna go now and let you…” She motioned to where Gus stood in the doorway and laughed awkwardly “...okay, bye!” She turned on her heels, feeling like a complete ass, and hurried into her building.

 

Gus laughed at that. The girl was going to be eaten alive in this town if she didn’t toughen up quickly. She shook her head in amusement as she went into the bar and locked the door behind her. She moved to set the things she carried on the bartop and let out a sigh.

 

“Who were you talking to?” The younger girl asked from behind the bar where she stood diligently cleaning the glassware.

 

“The newest addition to Purgatory P.D.’s finest” Gus said with a laugh. “Poor thing is too sweet for her own good. I gave her half a glare and she was fumbling nervously like I had given her the heebee jeebees.”

 

“You are pretty intimidating, Gus” The girl said with a sarcastic huff of a laugh. Truth was that Gus was one of the kindest and most beloved people in town.

 

Gus rolled her eyes at that and moved around the bar “I invited her in tonight so if she shows up her first round is on the house, okay?” She paused just outside the basement door and looked back at the younger girl “I am going to go do inventory.”

 

“How will I know who she is?” The girl called out but Gus was already gone. She let out a laugh as her head shook in amusement. She focused back on the glassware but her smile held. One of the pluses of living in a small town was knowing everyone. So she would just assume that the sweetest, shyest looking girl at the bar tonight was the one Gus was talking about. If more than one came in she would be giving out a lot of free drinks. Oh well, she thought. Beats giving out free alcohol to the drunks that came in every day, that was for sure.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

Nicole hadn’t meant to fall asleep. She had gone home and spread out on the floor with a few notebooks, pens, and a map of the town. She started taking notes of everything. Store names and the fastest routes to get to each building. She looked up the town history, which had enthralled her for hours, and that is when she must have dozed off. She shot up now from where she was laying and her hand moved to clutch at her eye. She had just had another one of her dreams, or memories, and this one involved her being punched in the eye. 

 

She held her hand over her throbbing eye as she stumbled around her apartment in search of a light. It was dark now. It must be late evening. She finally found a lightswitch and turned it on. She looked around with the eye not covered by her hand then moved to the fridge and though it was pretty empty she was relieved to see it came with an ice maker that had already filled the tray with quite a few cubes. She grabbed a handful then moved back to the living room. She dug through a pile of clothes until she found a sock, since she had no hand towels, and dropped the ice in there. She held it to her face and let out a sigh as it helped ease the pain immediately.

 

“Hand towels” She mumbled to herself as a reminder to add it to the list of things she needed at the store tomorrow. She then moved to the bathroom in her apartment.

 

After turning on the light in there she moved the sock from her eye and that’s when she saw the bruising already setting in. This startled her. This had never happened before. Her memories had left lingering pain that faded shortly after waking up but never had they left actual marks. She frowned and inspected her face. It looked like she had actually been punched.

 

She abandoned the mirror and returned to her notebooks on the living room floor. She found the one that she had been scribbling questions in and wrote in all capital letters to ask Nedley why she suddenly had a black eye.

 

Her concentration was broken when she heard a shout that came from the street level. She glanced at her watch and saw that it was nearly midnight. She must have been exhausted from the events of the past two days because she had slept most of the day away.

 

She got up and looked out her window again. This time the scene in the street was more wild than the previous night. There was a group of people in various stages of fighting. Some were one on one and some were in group brawls. There was glass from one of the front windows strewn about the street. Something had been thrown through it though it was hard to tell what from where Nicole stood. 

 

She could see the police were already there and breaking apart as many fights as they could. Standing out front of the building watching, along with a few curious onlookers, were three women. One was Gus which Nicole could tell by the short hair. The other was definitely the girl she had seen the night before with the shotgun. Her heart fluttered just at the sight of her dimly lit silhouetted figure standing on the sidewalk. Nicole drew in a deep breath. She had never even met the girl and yet her heart did flips when she saw her. She had to go meet her.

 

She rushed into the bathroom again to fix her hair, since she had been asleep on it for hours, when she caught sight of her eye in the mirror again. It had darkened substantially in just the few minutes she had been away from the mirror. There was no way she could walk down there and introduce herself to the girl with an unexplained black eye. Maybe tomorrow after she went to the store and bought some cover up but there was no way she could go down there tonight.

 

So she went back to her window and watched. The third girl, who had been standing near Gus and the other, was gone now. Nicole wondered if that was suspicious. No, she was sure it was fine. Either way she would have to investigate who it had been when she introduced herself the next day.

 

But for now she was tired. She had slept for hours and yet she was still exhausted. She hoped she would feel more energetic in the morning because she didn’t have a coffee pot yet and she knew from experience police station coffee was the worst. She was sure a good night’s sleep was all she needed. She was, after all, still adjusting to a timezone change and change to her entire day to day life. It would take time to adjust. She hoped, at least. Because she was definitely a lot more worn down than she had been before she had moved.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

The next morning Nicole tried to blend in on her stop at the local general store to gather a few essentials before she headed into her first day at work. But in a small town where everyone knows one another that was hard. Being the new girl, taller than average, wearing a ball cap and sunglasses inside definitely helped her stand out like a sore thumb. She was stared at skeptically by everyone she encountered but luckily no one dug too deeply into who she was. The lady who ran the store was pleasant to her and welcomed her to town. Seems word of the new red headed police officer in town had spread around overnight.

 

After dropping her things at her apartment and dressing for her first day, Nicole had made quick work of her walk to the police station. She kept her sunglasses on and went straight to Nedley’s office. She gave him a smile as a greeting before shutting the door behind her.

 

“Good morning, Haught” Nedley seemed unphased by her just walking in without knocking.

 

“I have so many questions” She started without even returning the greeting. She tossed the notebook she had written all of her inquiries in down on his desk but didn’t give him a chance to even look at it. “Firstly, look at this…” She pulled the sunglasses off to reveal the bruised eye she had obtained the night before. Though it had started to heal already, rapidly at that, it was still obvious. She hadn’t put makeup on it yet because she wanted to show it to Nedley. 

 

Nedley eyed Nicole carefully and when he had no idea what she was getting at he motioned to her eye “Get in a fight?”

 

“No!” Nicole let out an exasperated huff and sat down in the chair across from where Nedley sat at his desk. “But I had another dream connection thing. I saw someone else getting punched and when I woke up I had this” She motioned to her eye again. “It was worse last night but still. This has never happened before.”

 

Nedley listened then contemplated what he had heard. He thought it over carefully for a moment before clearing his throat and speaking calmly “You’ve never gotten actual wounds from your connections before?”

 

Nicole just shook her head. 

 

He nodded in acknowledgment of her statement. He stood up now and went to the blinds of his office. He made slow, careful work of closing each set before turning now to the small shelf behind his desk. He pulled out a small binder that was tucked behind a stack of files then moved to sit in his chair. He let out a sigh and flipped it open.

 

Nicole watched him curiously. He didn’t say anything and that kind of made her nervous. She tracked his every move around the office and when he sat with the binder she eyed that carefully as well “What is that?”

 

He lifted a finger for her to give him a moment without even looking up from the binder. He flipped a few more pages, paused, read the type that was on the page, and gave another nod. He looked up at Nicole now “Your connection has grown stronger.”

 

“Okay” Nicole let out a breath of a laugh as if she couldn’t believe he was being so nonchalant about it. “So what does that mean?”

 

He shook his head now “I don’t know. It could be that whoever you are connected to needs you more urgently than before. They could be in peril. It could mean you have gotten closer to them, either geographically or emotionally. It could mean that now that you know about your connection you’re more tuned in to it. Kind of like when you are driving and a radio station has static and you click the dial one way or another and it clears up.”

 

Nicole stared at him blankly. He wasn’t actually helping her understand at all. If anything he was confusing her more. Her eyes fluttered in a set of quick blinks and she shook her head “So how do we figure out which one it is?”

 

“Don’t know” Nedley said blandly. “I suppose we retrace the events leading up to your last connection dream and see if we can pinpoint what changed.”

 

What had changed? Nicole huffed to herself at that. Everything had changed. She had died, apparently, for no good reason. She had moved to an entirely new town. Gotten a new job. Nothing in her life was the same so how could she pinpoint what had caused this new development?

 

Before she could ask, there was a knock at Nedley’s door and he called out for them to enter.

 

“The scene is secure, sir.” It was another officer. He seemed nice in the brief moment Nicole glanced at him.

 

Nedley nodded and stood up. He motioned for Nicole to do the same “You’ll find your uniform in your locker. Jed can show you where that is…” He nodded at the other officer still standing in the doorway then glanced back at Nicole. “Get dressed then meet me at Shorty’s.”

 

“Sh-shorty’s?” Nicole stammered in surprise.

 

“You know where it’s located” Nedley stated then grabbed his hat and pushed it onto his head. “Better make haste, Haught. It’s your first case.”

 

“Case?” Nicole shot up now looking a little frazzled. She tried to ask another question but Nedley had already headed for the door. She shook her head and looked at the officer still standing by waiting for her. She offered him a crooked smile “Jed?”

 

“Haught” He nodded at her then motioned for her to follow him.

 

After she was showed where her locker was she was left alone to change. She was a mix of anxiety and excitement for her first case. This was real. This was happening. She was getting to work as a cop again and at the end of the day that is what she loved doing most. So she hurried to get into her uniform then rushed to the scene.

 

She found Nedley outside, looking over the broken glass strewn about the street from the bar fight the night before. He had a notebook out and was taking Gus’ statement about the events that had transpired.

 

“Gus, this is our new officer, Miss Haught. Haught, this is Gus the owner and proprietor of this here establishment.” Nedley nodded and motioned between the two women.

 

“We’ve met” Gus greeted Nicole with a smile. “I guess it’s a good thing you didn’t come in last night. As you can see things got messy…” Gus looked around the street littered with glass and other debris from various items that were once inside her bar then looked back to Nicole with a shrug.

 

“Sorry about that I fell asleep” Nicole blushed at her confession.

 

“There will be time for chit chat later, Haught” Nedley used his pen and motioned to the door of the bar. “Can you go take the statement of the bartender that was working last night?”

 

“Oh right” Nicole blew out a breath of a laugh, mostly at herself for forgetting she was a cop, and headed carefully into the bar. She tried not to step on anything that might be evidence. Once she made it to the bartop, she pulled the police notebook out of her breast pocket, found the pen attached to it, then looked up to the girl standing behind the bar.

 

Their eyes met and that is when it happened. The pain in Nicole’s chest, the one she had felt the night she had apparently died, surged back as if someone had shot her with a cannon. Her breath ceased in her lungs. She stumbled backwards. Her vision blurred, her skin started to tingle, and then everything went black.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

“She’s opening her eyes” A voice came to Nicole’s ears. It was the sweetest, softest voice she had ever heard. It sounded new yet familiar all in the same breath. She blinked her eyes open and when her focus came back to her she stared blankly at the first face she saw. She couldn’t believe it. It was the girl, the one with the shotgun, that she had seen her first night in town. She had no idea how she was so sure of it, having not seen a single actual detail about the girl from her window, but she knew regardless that it was her.

 

“Are you alright?” The girl asked timidly as she helped Nicole sit up now.

 

Every single place that the girl’s fingers touched Nicole radiated with electricity. It was almost too much to handle. Nicole almost passed out again. But she fought through it and managed to nod at the girl “I have no idea what happened.”

 

“You kind of went stiff as a board and hit the floor with a thud” The girl said with a laugh.

 

Gus, who had come inside at the commotion of Nicole fainting, handed down a glass of water to Nicole.

 

“Thanks” Nicole gave a nod and took a sip. She was completely embarrassed. She couldn’t believe she had fainted on her first day.

 

“I’m Waverly, by the way. I think you’re supposed to get my statement?”

 

Nicole choked on the sip of water she was taking. Waverly? The girl she had felt get shot in the chest saving someone named Wynonna? The girl that Wynonna had cried over the same night? Waverly was the small, electric girl with the shotgun. Waverly was the most incredible woman Nicole had ever seen? The mysterious Waverly she had heard Wynonna cry out for in her dream was now kneeling right in front of her checking to see if she was alright?

 

Then it hit her. Waverly was her connection. She was Waverly’s guardian angel.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	3. Tell me that I'm not crazy

“Are you alright?” Waverly asked again with a deep concern painting her face now.

 

Nicole just stared blankly at the girl. She was having a really hard time breathing. Her chest was on fire.

 

“Excuse me, ladies” Nedley said softly as he knelt near Nicole. “Can I have just a moment with my officer?”

 

Waverly stood now, her eyes still locked on Nicole, before she took Gus’ hand and they stepped away.

 

Nedley shook his head and lowered his voice now to speak to Nicole “What is wrong with you?”

 

Nicole’s eyes didn’t leave Waverly. She watched the tiny, enthralling, captivating woman standing across the room. Their eyes caught again and she felt a shiver slide along her spine when Waverly gave her a smile. 

 

This seemed to breathe some sort of life back into Nicole. She blinked and was able to look away now back to Nedley. She spoke softly and looked straight into his eyes “Waverly. She’s my connection. I can just feel it. She’s the one I have been sent to protect.”

 

This surprised Nedley. If there was anyone in this town that didn’t need protecting it was definitely Waverly Earp. He glanced over his shoulder at the small girl then slowly back to Nicole “How do you know?”

 

“I just do” Nicole shrugged and drew in a breath. The pain in her chest was fading but it was still there. “It has to be. I mean the night that I died, the night of our video call, I had this dream and I heard her name…”

 

“Everything alright, sir?” Jed, the other officer, stood above the other two on the ground and looked curiously between them.

 

“A-okay” Nedley gave a gruff nod then pushed himself from his knee to standing. He reached down and offered a hand to Nicole to help her get to her feet as well. “Officer Haught was so excited about starting work she forgot breakfast.” He spoke that loudly enough for all to hear. “Will you go get her a bagel?”

 

“But I was-”

 

“Now” Nedley cut him off sharply.

 

Jed looked deflated but didn’t argue further. He sulked away looking like a scolded child.

 

“I am so sorry I didn’t mean to cause a scene” Nicole said with a frown as she dusted her new uniform off now that she was up off the dirty bar floor.

 

“Not your fault” Nedley assured her with a smile. “But we need to continue our day jobs as if nothing happened. We can talk about what you’ve just told me later, alright?”

 

Nicole gave one quick nod. She understood they had to keep a low profile. Why wouldn’t they? As if people would really accept that they were actual guardian angels. People would think they sounded like lunatics.

 

“Can you get Miss Earp’s statement about what happened, please?” He eyed Nicole carefully as if looking for a hint that she might not be able to handle that. In all honesty he was curious as to how this would all play out. As far as he knew no one had actually ever met their connection in person before.

 

“Yeah” Nicole said with a confident nod. She wasn’t sure what would happen when she got close to Waverly again but she was damn well going to give it her best shot.

 

“Then go” He said firmly. He then turned away and gave Gus a smile as he called to her “Now you were about to show me more damage.”

 

Gus hurried away with Nedley as Nicole slowly approached Waverly. She had no idea if she would faint again so she wanted to be cautious.

 

Waverly could see Nicole’s timid approach and she laughed very softly “I don’t bite.” She shrugged and added with a smirk “Hard.”

 

Nicole let out a soft laugh and felt her cheeks warm with a blush. She gave her head an ashamed shake, unable to believe how her first day as a cop was going, and looked up at Waverly “My apologies. I skipped breakfast in all the excitement of my first day. Rookie mistake.”

 

“Totally” Waverly smiled gently. She was glad to see the new girl coming around. She seemed sweet. There was something inside Waverly that could just tell this new officer was special. “Next time remember your wheaties.”

 

“Please. I am all about raisin bran” Nicole grinned, glancing at Waverly once more before looking back to her little police notebook. She cleared her throat then clicked her pen so the tip was out and ready to write. “So your name is Waverly Earp?”

 

“Such great detective work” Waverly teased.

 

Nicole blushed. She had never known anyone in her entire life that could rattle her and yet here was this girl doing it without even trying. She laughed at herself and nodded “It’s my first day can’t I get a break?”

 

“I guess” Waverly rolled her eyes playfully then gave her a smile to show she was teasing.

 

“How generous” Nicole bit her lip to fight off another smile as she looked at the shorter girl. God she was beautiful. Stunning up close. She leaned her hip into the bartop, relaxing a bit now, before continuing “So tell me what happened, Miss Earp.”

 

“Just the usual” Waverly’s light, playful tone vanished and was replaced with annoyance. She let out a huff as she sat on a barstool just one down from where Nicole leaned into the bar and folded her arms across her chest. “Men are all the same. They think with their guns and their wangs. A few drinks and they are the most macho man in the room. Anyone that tells them different has it coming to them.”

 

Nicole nodded as she scribbled down notes and listened intently. “They are the worst” She mumbled softly and hoped that it had not been heard.

 

Waverly had heard it and a smirk came to her lips. She could tell this new officer had some spunk to her. She liked that.

 

When Waverly paused she looked up “So there was a fight. Do you know who started it?”

 

“No” Waverly sighed. “I had crouched behind the bar to find more glasses. When I popped back up the scuffle had already started.” She motioned toward the back of the bar near the pool tables. “I got up on the bar and tried to yell over the commotion for them to knock it off but no one was listening so I hopped down,” She motion from the spot on the bar where she had been standing and traced the path she had taken through the crowd with her hand. “I got about there, near the piano, when someone grabbed me inappropriately…”

 

This made Nicole frown immediately. Her innate urge to protect people started to swell in her chest. Perhaps it was her innate urge to protect Waverly, actually. In the moment she wasn’t sure which instinct was kicking in. “Who grabbed you?”

 

Waverly rolled her eyes again “Who hasn’t tried grabbing me in this town.”

 

“I need his name so we can press charges” Nicole said sternly.

 

“Please don’t” Waverly shook her head. “If we pressed charges every time one of the doofuses of this town did something like that we wouldn’t have anyone in the bar because they’d all be in jail.”

 

“Are you sure?” Nicole asked softly. She reached out now and put a comforting hand on Waverly’s shoulder.

 

When their skin touched there was a jolt. A spark of electricity. Kind of like when one person carrying static electricity touches another. But more intense. Both girls pulled away from the sharp, quick zap.

 

“Sorry” Nicole whispered softly, her eyes dropping to look at her fingertips where the electric tingle still lingered.

 

“It’s okay” Waverly replied just as quietly.

 

The two locked eyes for a moment and Nicole felt the pain in her chest rise up again. As a reflex she winced and reached for the spot where the pain originated.

 

Waverly looked immediately concerned again. She bit her lip and eyed Nicole carefully “Is everything alright?”

 

“Fine” Nicole replied quickly and dropped her hand from her chest. “Heartburn.”

 

“You are having a rough morning” Waverly quipped with a tentative smile on her lips.

 

Nicole offered a half smile in return then motioned back to her notebook “What happened after the man grabbed you?”

 

“I elbowed him square in the jaw” Waverly stated unapologetically. “He called me a bitch and swung.”

 

Nicole felt heat rise in her body. Part of it was because as Waverly recounted the event it all replayed it in her mind. It was exactly like the dream she had experienced the night before right before waking up with a black eye. The other part of the heat rose out of anger. What kind of man dare hit a woman?

 

She pretended to notate the event in her notebook while she took deep breaths to quell her anger. She drew in through her nose and let the breaths out slowly from her lips. As she felt the heat start to fade she dared look up from her notebook to Waverly again. She swallowed the lump in her throat and spoke evenly “Did he connect? When he swung I mean.”

 

“Yeah” Waverly nodded then turned her face to the left toward Nicole. She pushed some of her loose hair back off her face to uncover her right eye completely “Got me right here but it didn’t really do much damage. Stung for maybe a minute. No bruises or anything.” She let her hair drop back to her face then turned both eyes to focus on Nicole again. She perked an eyebrow and motioned with a nod toward the obvious bruise on Nicole’s right eye “I expected to wake up looking like you, officer. Did you have a rough night as well?”

 

Nicole felt her cheeks flush. She was such a bad liar and now she had to scramble to think of a cover story for her own bruised eye. She attempted to laugh it off weakly and shrugged “I was putting my contacts in this morning and dropped one on the floor. So I bent down to pick it up, forgetting how small my new bathroom is, and…” She motioned with her own hand toward her injured eye and smiled “Got myself with the towel rack hanging on the wall.”

 

Waverly smiled tenderly at the woman. There was such a sincere sweetness about the girl. She was drawn to her and the more they spoke the more she felt they would be good friends. “I didn’t catch your name, Officer.”

 

The way Waverly said officer made Nicole want to melt on the spot. Any word in the history of language had never sounded so sweet than in that moment. She fought off another deep blush but couldn’t hide the smile as it spread over her cheeks, revealing the deep dimples that came along with it “Nicole Haught. But you can just call me Nicole.”

 

“Nicole” Waverly’s smile grew more at the sound of her new friend’s name. “Pretty.”

 

“Thanks” Nicole breathed out a trembling sigh and her smile somehow grew wider.

 

“I like your dimples” Waverly bit her lip as her eyes moved around the features of Nicole’s face now. She was committing it all to memory. Realizing in that moment how gorgeous the new girl was. Everything about her was pleasing to the eye in a classic way that you’d find something beautiful. She was symmetrical and had soft lines. Her hair was tightly braided but didn’t add tension to Nicole’s demeanor. Well kempt yet easy on the eyes. Her heart fluttered the more she thought about it. Why was she so transfixed by Nicole’s looks?

 

Nicole barely noticed Waverly examining her every facial feature. When Waverly had compliment her dimples Nicole had nearly fainted again. She had turned her eyes down to her notebook to pretend to write something down so she didn’t have to look at the stunning woman who had captivated her from the moment she had seen her from three floors up.

 

“Did you get everything you needed?” Nedley, with his impeccable timing as always, appeared suddenly. He glanced between the girls and rose a curious eyebrow when he noticed the goofy looks on both their faces.

 

“I think we’re good here” Nicole gave a nod and tapped her pen quickly against her notebook as if she were finishing a note. She looked up at Nedley and gave him an overly enthusiastic grin. She glanced to Waverly and nodded again quickly “Miss Earp thank you for your cooperation. We will get back to you when we reach a resolution.”

 

Waverly bit her lip. She was flustered. Her head was swimming. She managed a wave to the two officers as they excused themselves from the scene. She watched them go, her eyes never leaving Nicole, and once they were out of sight she released a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. She blinked a few times and shook the images of Nicole’s beauty from her mind.

  
“You alright, babygirl?” Wynonna, who had stumbled downstairs from her deep slumber, asked when she approached her dazed looking sister.

 

“Good as gold” Waverly said as she planted a forced smile on her lips.

 

“You sure?” Wynonna eyed her sister carefully.

 

Waverly rolled her eyes and moved from the barstool where she had been sitting to make her way back behind the bar “You don’t have to baby me, Wynonna.”

 

“I am not babying you” Wynonna gave a huffed sigh of annoyance as she planted herself on the same barstool Waverly had just abandoned. “I just want to make sure you are alright since you-”

 

“What?” Waverly whirled around to face her sister with a glare in her eyes. She lowered her voice and spoke sharply “Saved your life?”

 

“Took a bullet to the chest, died in my arms for like two minutes, and then miraculously woke up like nothing had happened?” Wynonna gestured vaguely with her hand as she recalled what had unfolded a few nights earlier.

 

Waverly rolled her eyes again. Ever since that night it was all Wynonna wanted to talk about. She was over it. She didn’t see the point in rehashing the details over and over again.

 

“It was weird, Waves, even by Purgatory standards” Wynonna said with a nod. “I mean we have seen some pretty bizarre shit happen here but I’ve never seen a human being take a bullet to the chest and walk away without a scratch on her.”

 

“I don’t know what to say, Wynonna” Waverly offered in a bored tone. “I feel fine. Actually, I feel strong.”

 

Wynonna just gave a shake of her head. It made no sense. Her sister had been dead. She was lifeless in her arms. Then she was alive and well. It was like someone flipped a light switch and Waverly was unscathed. “I’m going to go see if Doc has any news” She finally relented the subject at hand knowing they weren’t getting anywhere with it. She reached over the side of the bar and grabbed a bottle of whiskey. She tilted her head back, put the bottle to her lips, and took a few long pulls from it. Swallowing without even a wince, she stood up, gave Waverly a smile, and headed for the door “Thanks for breakfast, cutie. I will catch you later. Stay out of trouble.”

 

Waverly rolled her eyes at her sister. If their aunt didn’t own the bar Wynonna couldn’t get away with swigging straight from the bottle. Oh who was she kidding, it didn't matter who owned it, Wynonna did whatever the Hell she wanted anyway.

 

She smiled at the thought. As much as her sister had been annoying her about saving her life and the events that unraveled that night she did actually really love her sister. Hopefully something new would happen to take Wynonna’s attention away from the bullet to the chest. It was weird, she would admit it, but it had happened and it was over with.

 

She sighed and reached up to rub the spot on her chest where the bullet had hit her. Right in the heart. The more she thought about it the more it freaked her out. She should have died. She drew in a sharp breath at the thought then pushed it away. She couldn’t think about that now she had a bar to clean up. She had windows to replace. She had a life to live, a life she was apparently not done with since she was seemingly unable to die.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

“Tell me what happened” Nedley said as he motioned for Nicole to take a seat in the chair across from his desk as he shut the door to his office once they were back at the station.

 

Nicole sat as she was instructed to before pulling out her notebook and looking over what she had written down. She cleared her throat and started to read “Miss Earp stated that she was not sure where the fight originated but-”

 

“Not that” Randy sat down in his seat and gave a chuckle. “I’m not too concerned with that. I want to know what happened between Waverly and yourself. How are you so sure she is your connection?” There was a wild excitement behind the older man’s eyes. He looked like a teenager awaiting the latest juicy gossip.

 

“Oh” Nicole blushed and folded her notebook closed. She felt a little silly that she had thought they were talking about police stuff. She gave her head a shake and thought about what he had asked for a moment before she finally just shrugged “I felt it.” She looked up at him and put her hand over her heart. Over the exact spot she had felt the pain and nodded once “It felt like I got hit by a train.”

 

Nedley listened intently. Again he took a moment without speaking to fully absorb what he had heard before finally speaking “Was the feeling painful or something else?”

 

“Pain” Nicole nodded then she smiled and let out a sort of happy sounding sigh “And something else. It was definitely something I have never experienced before in my entire life. It was…” She drew in a breath and paused as her mind searched for the word that could fully describe it. She took a few long moments then finally she looked back to him and nodded “Magnetic.  It was like an insatiable yearning to find something you didn’t know you were looking for until you see it and suddenly you know all along that this is what you were meant for in life.” She tilted her head to the side slightly and eyed Nedley as she asked “Does that make sense? Kind of like it was-”

 

“Destiny” Nedley finished the sentiment for her with a smile. When Nicole nodded in agreement he let out a sound that could only be described as a delighted laugh. It was soft and short but it definitely left his lips. 

 

Nicole perked an eyebrow at the reaction. She hadn’t known the man long but she was certain that was not a sound he had ever made in his life. She gave a shrug and smiled slightly at him “Has anything like this ever happened before? I mean in….” She motioned between the two of them and whispered the next few words “...our world.”

 

“Our world?” Nedley perked an eyebrow slightly and fought off an amused smirk. “We are in our world, Haught.”

 

“I meant, you know…” She looked around like they were being watched and whispered again “...Guardian angels.”

 

Nedley smirked now. He knew what she meant but it was funny watching her act as if it were a secret club. After a moment he gave his head a slight shake “I don’t know that this has ever happened before. What I mean by that is I have never heard of one of us meeting the human they have been watching over. Then again our history isn’t really documented.”

 

“What do you mean?” Nicole perked up a bit. They had a history? She was part of a subculture that had it’s own account of the events of time? That was kind of exciting.

 

Nedley just shrugged at that “I mean there aren’t rules, Haught. There isn’t some big boss at a cloud desk overseeing us all as we fly around on angel wings to and from Heaven for our regularly scheduled check-ins and progress reports.”

 

“We get wings!” Nicole almost shouted she was so excited. Her eyes went wide with surprise at her own outburst and she quickly slapped a hand over her mouth to keep herself from doing it again.

 

Nedley let out a breath of a laugh and shook his head calmly “No, Nicole, we don’t have wings. We aren’t really angels. I guess I used the term guardian angel because it was the easiest way for you to understand the concept of what we do. Anyway…” He waved his hand to the side, pushing that subject away, and continued without a breath. “What we do is still kind of a mystery. I’m not sure how long our kind has existed, how we came to be, how many of us there are. This right here…” He pulled out the binder he had read out of the day before and held it up for her to see “...this was started only three generations back. Someone down the line was frustrated with the lack of information about all of this that he started making notes and writing down anything he learned. Then when he met his apprentice he would pass it on and ask they continued his work.”

 

Nicole blinked. Her eyes went from the binder to Nedley then back again. She processed. She looked a little confused as the information swirled around inside her brain. The questions in her mind where severely outweighing the answers she was getting.

 

“Either way” Nedley continued once Nicole didn’t interrupt “I am definitely going to need you to be completely open and honest with me about every experience you have from now on. Whether it is a connection dream or something that happens in person between Waverly and yourself, I want to know about it all.”

 

“Okay” Nicole gave a nod. That was simple. She could do that. “I know how I got my black eye” She said quickly while motioning to the rapidly fading bruise on the right side of her face “Someone punched Waverly last night in the bar brawl. She said it hurt for like a minute but it didn’t bruise at all on her. Just me.”

 

“Really?” Nedley perked an eyebrow. He looked completely intrigued by that. He took a moment to write something down in the small binder before he looked back up to Nicole and nodded “In the past have all of your connections been painful?”

 

“Yeah” Nicole stated with a nod. “But the pain would usually fade pretty soon after I woke up. They have never left a mark before, though.”

 

Again Nedley gave a nod as he wrote in the binder silently. It was a moment where the only sound was his pen scribbling on paper before he finished and looked up again “Any of your connection dream contain happy memories?”

 

Nicole thought about it for a second. She reached into the deepest parts of her memory bank to try and find a time where she had woken up after experiencing something happy in one of those dreams. Unfortunately she was coming up empty. After a moment of deep thought she let out a disappointed sigh and shook her head “Just painful ones.”

 

Nedley nodded again. He once more took to scribbling down the details before pausing. He looked over what he had just written then looked to Nicole once more “If it’s not too much trouble can you start writing down any experiences you remember along with the new ones you might have.”

 

“I have journals” Nicole perked up with a renewed excitement in her tone. “Tons of them. I started writing down my dreams when I was twelve. I have everything I’ve ever dreamed or can remember dreaming already written down. I just have to-” She stopped and her face twisted into a frown “Damn it. My doctor has them.”

 

“Your doctor?” Nedley looked concerned at this now.

 

“A new Psychiatrist I was seeing in hopes of trying to figure out what my dreams meant” She let out a deflating puff of air at that. She thought about it for a moment then looked back at Nedley “I bet he would send them to me. I mean, he has to, right? They are mine. Since I’ve moved away there is no need for him to have them anymore.”

 

Nedley nodded at that. He had a stern look in his eyes now. Like he said there weren’t really rules for what they did but he was sure a doctor poking around inside the mind of one of them was not allowed. “How about you give me his name and I will make a call for you. I’ll use my police voice and make it sound official.” He put on a forced smile to try and distract from the fact he was concerned.

 

“Sure” Nicole nodded and flipped open the police notebook she still held. She wrote the name and number quickly then tore the page out to hand over to Nedley.

 

Nedley took it with a gracious nod then pointed to his office door “You can go. You are done for the day so take it easy. I’ll see you in here bright and early tomorrow morning. I should have a desk for you by then.”

 

Nicole beamed at that. A desk! That made it official. She stood up from her chair and headed for the door. She paused and looked back at the man with a fond smile “Can I ask you one more quick question?”

 

“Shoot” Nedley mumbled while barely looking up from the binder full of notes.

 

“I thought you said we were connected?”

 

Nedley paused and looked up now. There was a twitch of a smile at the corner of his lips. Nicole was far more curious than he had anticipated “Not in the same way as we are connected with humans. You’re my apprentice. I am tasked with passing on all the knowledge of what we do to you and helping you prepare to take over for me here. One day, when I am gone, you will meet your apprentice too.” 

 

Nicole gave a nod. It made sense. She smiled at the thought. She liked thinking that Nedley had been watching over her in some way her entire life. Then she thought about that and spoke again without realizing it “So if you’ve been watching over me my entire life doesn’t that mean I should have someone I’m aware of, that I am watching as well, so I can connect with them when the time comes to call them here?”

 

Nedley shook his head and gave a single shoulder shrug “They might not be born yet. You are only twenty-five. So unless you’re dying soon you shouldn’t need to meet them for a few years after I’m gone.”

 

That made sense. Nicole accepted that answer and gave a nod. “I’ll see you tomorrow!” She gave a wave as she pulled the office door open and headed for the front door of the police station. Considering how her day had started out she was in a fantastic mood. Things had definitely turned around. She was all smiles as she marched back to her apartment to change out of her uniform and into something a little more comfortable. The khaki pants were terrible. She planned to explore her new town after getting a little lunch in her. She had a renewed excitement inside her and she simply could not wait to see what life in the little town of Purgatory had in store for her. Only good things, she assumed. Then again she could be wrong about that. Dead wrong.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	4. I'm a puppet on your string

_ “Wynonna, behind you!” Waverly watched her sister turn just in time to duck under the swinging blade of the man trying to kill her. When she saw her sister escape she called out again “Peacemaker!” Her sister turned and Waverly tossed the long barreled gun to her. She watched as Wynonna turned once more and somehow nailed the guy who had just tried to charge her with a single shot right between the eyes. _

 

_ The man’s eyes glowed a deep red color and the ground beneath him cracked open. The dirt broke apart in the heat of the flames and he fell into the hole with a yell as those flames engulfed him. Then as quickly as the hole had appeared it was gone. _

 

_ Wynonna turned to look at Waverly as she pulled in a few deep breaths to steady her breathing “You alright, babygirl?” _

 

_ “Nothing to it” Waverly spoke. Then she saw Wynonna’s eyes go wide and point behind her. Waverly whirled around and in a flash she saw a fireball coming at her. The only thing she could do was lift her left arm and turn her face away in an attempt to protect herself. _

 

Nicole hollered out in pain as she shot up from her dream. She immediately reached for her own left arm that was consumed with an intense burning sensation. She could feel the heat of her skin and even though it was dark in her apartment she had no doubt that there were burns there.

 

She stumbled to her feet as quickly as she could then headed to her bathroom. After flipping a switch to turn on the light she immediately cast her eyes down to her arm. Just as she had suspected her forearm was covered in red skin and blisters. She winced slightly as she examined the new wound. Her head gave a shake and she looked up to the mirror above her sink. She looked tired. She was tired. She had been woken up two nights in a row due to injury causing dreams.

 

She let out a yawn then looked back at her arm. She wasn’t sure she liked the new little quirk that came with her connection dreams. She would have to ask Nedley if there was something she could do to avoid the injuries but for now she went in search of the first aid kit she had bought at the store. She was glad her police uniform had long sleeves so she could cover up her random bandages.

 

As she wrapped gauze around her burns her mind couldn’t help but wonder back to her dream. Now that she knew who Waverly was and that these dreams weren’t dreams at all but instead they were her experiencing what Waverly was experiencing she couldn’t help but be a little bit haunted by what she had seen. What the Hell was Waverly and Wynonna, whom she still hadn’t met, mixed up in? Even more so how had a gunshot from Wynonna caused a man to presumably be sucked down to the pits of Hell?

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

Thankfully after bandaging her arm up Nicole had been able to go back to sleep. The pain was still present but it was already starting to feel better by the time she had woken up to get ready for work. So she dressed carefully and with a smile on her face left on her short walk to the station.

 

The sun was shining and though it was early it was already a pretty lovely day. Nicole smiled at this and slowed her pace so she could soak in the feeling of the sun on her skin. 

 

She was so preoccupied by the feel of the warmth on her face that once she reached the curb outside the police station she paused. She stood there, face pointed toward the sky, eyes closed, just letting herself enjoy the feeling of it for a few more seconds. It seemed to be rejuvenating her. It was filling her body, her every nerve ending, with energy. She felt alive.

 

“Excuse me, Officer Haught?”

 

“Shit” Nicole jumped in surprise at the sound of her name. She put a hand to her heart and cast her eyes downward to the source of the sound. She immediately blushed when she realized that it had been Waverly beckoning her. She bit her lip and offered a bashful smile “Miss Earp.”

 

“Waverly” She said with a laugh. “Please.”

 

“Nicole” The taller girl repeated her own name in the same tone that Waverly had just done. “I know I’m a police officer but, please, call me Nicole.”

 

Waverly bit her lip shyly and gave a single nod “I forgot. Nicole it is.”

 

“Thank you” Nicole’s smile softened into a more genuine one and she eyed Waverly carefully. She was half doing it to look for any hints as to how the rest of the night had played out once she had woken from her dream and part of her was still just soaking in the beauty of the girl. 

 

Waverly realized Nicole was regarding her and she blushed. No one had ever managed to make Waverly feel bashful like this. It was weird. Not creepy just….different. A little awkward. So she cleared her throat to break up the awkwardness and rocked up on her toes “So I wanted to say thank you for your hard work yesterday. I am sure you will figure out who started the fight.”

 

“Oh” Nicole realized she had been staring and quickly looked away. She blushed and tried to play it off like no big deal with a shrug “Just doing my job.”

 

“Either way” Waverly said firmly before extending her hand that held the tupperware she held out to Nicole. “Thank you.”

 

“What is this?” Nicole’s eyes dropped to the plastic container and a soft smile slipped onto the corners of her lips.

 

“Breakfast” Waverly said with a little shrug. Her eyes lifted from the food she had brought to Nicole’s face and she smiled “Since you forgot to eat yesterday I wanted to make sure you were fed today before you started work.”

 

Nicole’s heart fluttered and it wasn’t because the proximity to Waverly had caused the pain in her chest to come back. This was a different flutter. It was a little confusing and a little terrifying but it was a good flutter regardless. She bit her lip softly to fight off the grin that wanted to take over her face and reached for the container of food “You made me breakfast?”

 

“To be honest they were leftovers from what I made my aunt and sister this morning” Waverly shrugged shyly and dropped her hand away now that Nicole had taken the tupperware. “But I had purposely added extra eggs with the idea of feeding you.”

 

“Wow. Thank you Waverly” The sincerity that dripped through Nicole was almost too sweet to bear. The genuinely humbled smile on her lips could cause a cavity if looked at for too long. At least that’s what Waverly had thought upon seeing it.

 

That’s why she looked away again. She drew in a deep breath to try and calm the way her heart had taken off racing at the sight of Nicole’s smile. The sight of Nicole’s dimples. Those beautiful dimples. She could stare at them forever…

 

“So, have a good day!” She blurted out suddenly before turning on her heels to head in the opposite direction of Nicole. What in the world was going on? Why was she acting so weird? Why in the world couldn’t she form a normal sentence around Nicole? She shook her head as she rushed away in an attempt to push all of these questions out of her mind. She had bigger things to focus on.

 

“B-” Nicole waved her hand at Waverly’s back then let out a deflated sigh “Bye.” She frowned and looked down at the food. Had she said something wrong? She shook the thought off and headed inside. 

 

“There you are” Nedley was waiting at the front desk of the station.

 

“I’m sorry. Am I late?” Nicole frowned and looked down at her wrist. Then she remembered her watch had not been put on that morning thanks to the burns from the night before. She bit her lip and pulled the end of her sleeve down her left wrist more snuggly to ensure the bandages were out of sight.

 

“Not at all” Nedley shook his head and motioned for her to follow. They were headed to his office but they stopped before they made it all the way to the door. He turned and motioned to a desk that was right next to his office windows and gave a nod “This will be your desk, Haught. You are allowed two personal effects so as not to clutter your work space. Now come on” He barely paused before he was turning and heading into his office.

 

Nicole followed quickly. She took her usual spot in the chair across from his desk and set the tupperware she had been holding onto tightly down on his desk.

 

“Did you really think you could bribe me with food?” Nedley asked with a slight smirk as he sat down as well.

 

“Oh” Nicole shook her head and grabbed the container off the top of his desk quickly. “No, I’m sorry this is my breakfast. Waverly bought it for me since I passed out yesterday due to the fact that I forgot to eat. At least that’s what we told her.”

 

“She’s always been a thoughtful girl” Nedley nodded and offered a fond smile for the girl.

 

“I can tell” Nicole said with a smile as her eyes lingered on the food Waverly had brought to her.

 

Nedley saw the dreamy look in Nicole’s eyes and cleared his throat to bring her attention back to him. When she looked up he spoke “Any new developments?”

 

“On the case?” Nicole looked like a deer caught in the headlights. She hadn’t been working the case yesterday. He had told her to relax.

 

Nedley rolled his eyes slightly before folding his hands together on the top of his desk. He leaned forward against them and spoke softly but firmly “When we are in my office with the door shut we are not talking about police stuff. Got it?”

 

“Right” Nicole gave a firm nod and tried not to blush. She kind of felt like a scolded child just then. She cleared her throat and shrugged “I did have another dream last night.”

 

This perked Nedley up a bit. He eyed Nicole for a heartbeat then asked “Did you have dreams this close together before moving here?”

 

Nicole gave a quick shake of her head. “No, never like this. Everything about my dreams is so much more vivid and intense. It’s almost like I am inside Waverly’s head, you know? Seeing it through her eyes.”

 

“Interesting” Nedley mumbled and pulled out his binder to take notes. Once his pen stopped he asked “What happened last night?”

 

“I can’t really describe it” Nicole said softly as the images of the man being sucked down a fiery hole came back to her. She was quiet for a moment as she relived the memory before she gave a slight shrug “Wynonna shot a man and he disappeared. Then Waverly was attacked by a big fireball and-”

 

“Fireball?” Nedley cut in quickly. He frowned at that and moved now to pull a drawer open on his desk. He rifled through a few things before finding the file he needed and pulling it out. He flipped it open and started to read.

 

“Yeah, fireball. Why?” Nicole leaned over the desk slightly to try and see what he was looking at “Is that bad?”

 

“Just interesting” He mumbled softly.

 

Nicole nodded at that. She watched him read for a moment. As she did so she folded her arms and the pain of her burns came back to her. She winced and sat up a little more straight “I also got this…” She carefully rolled the sleeve of her shirt up to reveal the bandages.

 

When Nedley looked up and saw the bandages his eyes went wide. He pointed to her arm and gave a shrug “Didn’t you think you should lead with that?”

 

“I kind of forgot!” Nicole huffed in frustration. Her entire world had been flipped upside down in the matter of four days because of him the least he could do was cut her some slack while she adjusted to it all. Plus Waverly had kind of distracted her.

 

“How did you get that?” Nedley asked a little more calmly now that the surprise had gone from him.

 

“When Waverly was attacked by a fireball she put up her arm to shelter her face” Nicole looked down and shrugged as if what she had just said was a casual fact. She looked at the bandages on her arms and something occurred to her. She looked back up and tilted her head to the side as she spoke next “I saw her this morning and she looked fine. Totally unburnt. She looked radiant like she had slept for 14 hours or something. How is that possible?”

 

“I’m not really sure” Nedley said through a sigh. He scratched the side of his head and looked back to his binder. “To be honest Nicole all of this is uncharted ground for me. When I was an apprentice and learning about all of this stuff I was told we protected our human. All humans if we could but specifically our connected human. It wasn’t something we had to think about or be aware of really it just kind of happened. Our energy and strength would appear when our connection was in trouble and we would find a way to guide them safely out of harm’s way. This is…” He gave a shake of his head and a slight shrug “...different.”

 

“Yeah I’d say. It’s like I’ve been on the receiving end of all of her pain for the entirety of her life” Nicole said blandly.

 

“Exactly” Nedley agreed quickly. “It shouldn’t be like that. We are there to ease pain, sure, but not take it away. Were supposed to guide toward safety not step in front of a fireball. There shouldn’t be fireballs. Waverly should not be able to be getting into situations where she can be hurt.” He looked at Nicole and his eyes held a mix of worry and confusion and his head gave a shake again “Your connection is different and I’m not sure why.”

 

“Are you sure I’m really a…” Nicole circled her hand a few times in the air as if trying to manifest the word she wanted out of nowhere. When that didn’t work she just sighed in defeat “...are you sure I’m really one of you?”

 

“No doubt” Nedley said with conviction.

 

“How do you know?” Nicole asked softly in hopes he did not think she doubted him.

 

“You were showed to me by whatever powers are at work here. I just knew. Like when you met Waverly and you knew she was your connection.”

 

Nicole just nodded a few times. She honestly had no idea how to process everything. It seemed the more she learned the less she understood. She needed far more answers than she was being offered. It was frustrating and confusing and a bit terrifying. She wanted to go back to just being a cop who liked to protect and serve and had weird dreams at night. This was all too much.

 

“I am going to give you an assignment” Nedley said as he stood up from his desk now, effectively breaking Nicole’s train of thought. He opened the door to his office and gave her a smile “I want you to get to know Waverly as a person. Become her friend. Go see movies together or shopping or whatever it is two girls do.” He shrugged the last of his words off. He had a daughter and a wife and he still didn’t get women. “Maybe getting to know her personally will lead to some answers.”

 

“How?” Nicole asked as she stood from her desk.

 

“I have no idea but it is worth a shot” Nedley shrugged and let out a soft laugh. “Also, the file for the Shorty’s case is on your desk. Get to work.” With that he motioned her out of his office.

 

Nicole barely had time to make it through the door before he was shutting it behind her. She let out a huff and glanced back at the door with a scowl “Rude.”

 

“You’re not in trouble are you?”

 

Nicole whirled around at the sound of the voice that was growing more familiar by the minute. The surprise at seeing Waverly leaning against her desk was evident on her face “What?”

 

Waverly motioned to the office Nicole had just come out of and shrugged “You were in there a while.”

 

“Oh” Nicole let out a kind of awkward laugh and moved toward her desk now. “Just going through new police training and stuff. You know how it is starting a new job.”

 

“No I don’t” Waverly said pretty matter-of-fact like and stood upright from where she had been leaning on the desk. “The only job I’ve ever had is Shorty’s and I got the job because I’m family and had grown up there.”

 

“Oh. Well there’s a lot that goes into it…” Nicole stopped herself from explaining and brushed it off with a laugh. She moved to sit at her desk now. She set the tupperware that Waverly had given her earlier on top of the desk then looked back up at Waverly calmly. “What can I help you with?”

 

“You haven’t eaten? Do you not like eggs?” Waverly looked immediately distraught at the sight of the untouched container of food.

 

“Oh!” Nicole snatched the food off her desk again and shook her head “No, no, of course I like eggs. I just..” She motioned to the office then her own desk and shrugged “I haven’t gotten a chance yet.”

 

“Oh” Waverly breathed out in relief. She didn’t know what she would do if Nicole hadn’t liked her food. She had no idea why she cared so much but she did. “Well you should eat soon so you don’t end up passing out again today.”

 

“Right” Nicole said with a laugh. She pointed to the container and gave a nod “You know what? I’ll dig in right now.” With that she popped the lid off and was immediately greeted with the scent of scrambled eggs. Her stomach growled. She was glad Waverly had thought to feed her because she really had forgotten to eat that morning. 

 

“Wow they smell amazing” She said with a smile as she reached into the container to fetch the plastic set of cutlery that Waverly had so thoughtfully packed inside along with the food. What a completely mindful gesture.

 

A satisfied smile came to Waverly’s lips as she watched Nicole dig in. “Are they good?”

 

“Delicious” Nicole mumbled around the eggs in her mouth.

 

“Charming” Waverly teased. “You would get along with my sister. She loves talking with her mouth full of food.”

 

“You have a sister?” Nicole asked as she swallowed the bite she had taken.

 

Waverly nodded and smiled slightly “Yeah an older sister. She’s a few years older than I am but we are pretty close.”

 

“That’s awesome” Nicole smiled at the idea of little Waverly having someone to always play with. That was one thing about being an only child that had been hard. You either had to make friends or play alone.

 

“Yeah it is” Waverly said softly though it sounded a bit sad. Her sister and herself had been through a lot with their family and not all of it was happy. She was glad they were where they were now but she did wish she could change a few things. The idea of that went out of her head, though, because she had just noticed the bandages peeking out from under Nicole’s sleeve. Her face curled into a look of concern and she reached out in the direction of the arm gently “What happened to you?”

 

“Huh?” Nicole was mid bite when Waverly spoke. She looked up and followed Waverly’s eyes to where she was looking at her bandaged arm. She quickly dropped her arm out of sight and gave a little shrug “Okay so I am kind of a klutz.”

 

“Nicole” Waverly frowned and moved around the desk now to Nicole’s left side. She tried to get another look but Nicole tucked the arm under the desk and out of sight. “Come on, let me take a look at it.”

 

“It’s fine, really” Nicole waved her other hand in a way that looked like she was trying to scoot Waverly away from her. 

 

“What happened?” Waverly asked again in a more firm tone.

 

The flash of the fireball consuming Waverly in her dream from the night before came back to her. She closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath. She was not great at thinking up lies on the spot but she knew she couldn’t just come out and say she had seen Waverly in her dreams. She let out a heavy sigh and shrugged “I leaned into my curling iron this morning while I was brushing my teeth. I had it on so I could do my hair and while it was heating I decided to brush my teeth and I like to get really close to the mirror when I do that and I told you my new bathroom is small so when I leaned forward…” She motioned to her arm and shrugged again “Oops?”

 

Waverly didn’t believe Nicole for a single second. Mostly because she had already noticed Nicole’s hair was braided again when she had come to bring her breakfast. She didn’t know why she cared so much but she did. She also didn’t like the fact that Nicole was lying to her. But she wouldn’t let on to it and put on her best fake smile “It sounds like you need someone to follow you around and make sure you don’t hurt yourself.”

 

“Yeah wouldn’t that be nice?” Nicole laughed weakly at that as her eyes focused on Waverly. If this girl only knew that the sentiment she had just expressed was the very reason Nicole was sitting there in front of her.

 

Seeing the look on Nicole’s face unnerved Waverly. Not in a bad way really. In an unsettling way. Like Nicole was looking right into her soul or something. She wasn’t sure if she liked it. So she pushed a smile on her face and broke the tension with a clearing of her throat “Anyway, I came back because I forgot to give you this…” She produced a necklace out of her pocket and extended it toward Nicole. “I found it in the rubble near where the fight broke out the other night. I was hoping it was a clue or something.”

 

“Oh!” Nicole perked up and her eyes focused on the necklace. She gave a nod and reached out to take it “Yeah, thank you so much. I will get this to evidence right away.”

 

Waverly gave a satisfied nod and smiled at Nicole. Their eyes met and there was that weird feeling again. Was it tension? Was it energy? She couldn’t pin it down. All she knew was it was different. Once more she cleared it away by speaking “So I am going to go…”

 

“Right” Nicole blinked a few times to bring herself out of the staredown she had going on with Waverly’s beautiful face and smiled. “Of course. I have police business to attend to…” She pretended to answer her phone and gave a goofy little wiggle in her chair as she did so. She had no idea why but the ability to make an absolute fool of herself was out in full force near Waverly.

 

Waverly laughed at Nicole’s goofy mocking of her own work. She shook her head in amusement and offered a wave “Have a nice day, Nicole.”

 

“Oh hey!” Nicole shouted and shot up from her chair with urgency. When all eyes in the vicinity landed on her she blushed a deeper red than she ever had before in her life. She saw the stunned looked on Waverly’s face and let out a shy laugh “Sorry I thought you were going to run off a lot faster than you did. I didn’t mean to yell at you.”

 

Waverly laughed again and gave her head a shake to say it was no big deal. God Nicole was adorable when she was awkward.

 

“Anyway” Nicole pushed forward in a much lower voice once everyone’s momentary pause in order to stare at her had lapsed. “Do you wanna hang out tonight?” Seeing the surprise take over Waverly’s face at the question caused an immediate panic in her and she started to ramble “I just mean you’re literally the only person in town that I don’t work with that I’ve even really talked to at all and you seem nice and probably know all the fun things to do here so I thought we could just-”

 

“Sure” Waverly cut off her ramble with a little smirk on her lips. She could have let her keep trying to explain it away but she figured she would end her misery and agree before she passed out due to lack of air in her lungs from all the talking. And people said she talked too much.

 

Nicole let out a sigh of relief. She then realized she had sighed in relief out loud and blushed again. She rolled her eyes at herself and shrugged “My place? That way you can see how small my bathroom is and finally understand how dangerous it is. Then we can go out or whatever.”

 

“Sure” Waverly repeated with a soft laugh. “Maybe I’ll baby proof it before we head out.” She joked.

 

“That would be great” Nicole’s smile spread and brought her dimples out of hiding. She offered Waverly a thumbs up “See ya later then.”

 

Oh god, those dimples. Waverly felt herself get a little warm suddenly but managed to hold it together. Well kind of. She did returned Nicole’s thumbs up with two finger guns and gave her a nod “Later.” 

 

Nicole watched Waverly hurry off and once she was out of sight she let out a sigh and fell back into her chair with a thud. She looked at her right hand as if it had betrayed her and shook her head “A thumbs up? Where did that even come from?” She dropped her hand now then looked over her desk. She drew in a deep breath and then nodded. She would have time to think about Waverly later. For now she had real actual police work to do.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.

 


	5. But I fall when I'm around you

Luckily for Nicole the rest of her day was taken up by going through detail after detail from the bar fight case as well as mounds of paperwork to accompany it all. She barely had time to grab a lunch let alone watch the clock as time passed and she could be off of work. She had been so busy in fact that she had forgotten momentarily that she and Waverly were set to hang out that evening. It wasn’t until she was walking home from the police station that she glanced over to look at Shorty’s in hopes of seeing Waverly that she was reminded of their plans.

 

After that she had hurried home in a bit of a panic. She didn’t know what time Waverly was going to show up because they hadn’t set a time. Why didn’t they do that? They also had not exchanged numbers so she could not call and ask what time. That was really dumb of her. She had no idea why she was incapable of thinking clearly around Waverly but she was going to have to get better at it because her forgetting small details like time and telephone numbers was not like her at all. In fact it was rather frustrating.

 

She didn’t have time to dwell. She needed to shower and get ready for the evening. As she had no idea what time to expect Waverly she figured being ready quickly was better than having Waverly waiting around for her. So she made quick work of her shower and once she picked out some clothes to wear she had changed into those before moving back to her bathroom to fix her hair.

 

She had decided on clothes that looked casual but nice. A long sleeve sweater that was light blue with a few white flowers printed randomly about it. It was comfortable but also clung to her body in a way that it did not look baggy and sloppy. She decided on long sleeve to cover her burns in hopes that Waverly wouldn’t ask about them again.

 

Her burns, she had noticed, had actually healed immensely during her time at work. It went from the red skin with blisters that had presented itself that morning to just a few crusty light scabs and light pink irritation around it. At least there was a plus to her new found ability to absorb Waverly’s injuries. The healing process was insanely quick. In fact her black eye was barely even a dime sized bruise near the corner of her eye now.

 

Usually Nicole didn’t wear too much makeup. It was too time consuming and she was blessed with a great complexion and fantastically vibrant features. But for those special occasions she had a bag of a few essentials. So after her shower she had settled herself in her sink, yes sitting on her sink facing her mirror, to be close enough to apply her makeup just right. A little bit of lip gloss, some mascara, and the smallest bit of eye liner. It didn’t take too long but she wanted to make sure that it was perfect so she was taking her time with it.

 

She had finished her hair, deciding to keep it out of its usual braid and letting it cascade in loose waves down her shoulders and back, and makeup fairly quickly. She was right in the middle of brushing her teeth when a knock came to her door. She jumped at the sound. Her apartment had been dead silent save for the sound of the water running while she scrubbed her teeth so the knock had startled her. She quickly finished what she was doing, spit the rest of the toothpaste from her mouth, rinsed her brush off, then hurried out of the bathroom to her door.

 

She drew in a deep breath to calm herself down. She was just hanging out with a new friend and that was all. Nothing to get too worked up about. She nodded at that, put a smile on her face, and pulled her door open.

 

“Oh good I have the right number” Waverly greeted her with a soft laugh. “I realized I agreed to meet you at your place when I had no idea where you lived. But, perks of living in a small town!”

 

“Yeah we didn’t swap details too well when we set this up, did we?” Nicole let off a soft laugh then stepped aside “Come on in.”

 

Waverly gave the girl a quick look over, smiled softly in liking at what she saw, then stepped into her apartment. She was barely a foot in the door when she froze in her path and stared in horror. She looked completely shocked. Her jaw dropped a little as her eyes took in the room she had just entered. 

 

Nicole closed the door and noticed immediately Waverly had paused just inside. She stepped beside her and when she saw the look of horror on her face her own heart dropped “What?”

 

“You live like this?” Waverly stuttered out the words in disbelief and a shake of her head. “It looks like you got robbed. I mean where is your couch?”

 

“Oh” Nicole let out a shy laugh and shrugged as she stepped around Waverly. Her apartment was bare. She had moved most of her boxes into her bedroom area but she hadn’t really unpacked anything. She was still sleeping on the floor in her living room. At least she had an air mattress now. But that was about it. No furniture, no pictures, and no decorations. It was bleak. “Give me a break. I just moved in” She said with a shrug from where she stood in the middle of her empty living room.

 

Waverly still look appalled as she glanceded around. She couldn’t believe how bare it was in there. Finally her eyes lifted back to Nicole and her face turned from shocked to amused and she gave the girl a smirk “You got some…” She lifted and pointed at her own chin to indicate that Nicole had something on her face.

 

“Huh?” Nicole instinctively lifted her hand in the same way Waverly was. She immediately felt the cool wet line of toothpaste that had dribbled out of her mouth. She blushed immediately and turned to head into the bathroom. Her face was hot with a blush as she quickly wiped away the white streak with a little bit of toilet paper. She could not believe she had answered the door like that.

 

“So this is the danger room, huh?” Waverly, who had followed Nicole, stood in the doorway of the bathroom. She looked around and gave a little nod at what she saw. It was in fact small. There was not nearly enough room for personal belongings. No counter space for various beauty products. It looked like a prison bathroom. 

 

“Oh” Nicole laughed, thankful for the distraction from her toothpaste face, and gave a nod. “Yeah it’s pretty tight in here. I mean…” She looked up and motioned to the ceiling just a few inches from her head. She smiled and gave a shrug “But when you move in a hurry you just kind of have to take what you can get.”

 

“Move in a hurry?” Waverly’s interest was piqued at that statement. She eyed the bathroom for just a moment longer then stepped out of the doorway so Nicole could leave the room.

 

“Oh yeah” Nicole bit her lip at what she had said. She wasn’t really sure what she was allowed to tell Waverly. Nedley hadn’t really given her any rules. She didn’t know how much the town had talked about her arrival yet either. She wondered if there were rumors flying around about her already. 

 

“So as you can see there isn’t much to do here” Nicole changed the subject and gave a quick gesture around her empty living room and kitchen area where they were standing once more before turning around to smile at Waverly who had followed her from the bathroom. “I also have no idea what there is to do around town so I was hoping you had something in mind.”

 

“I haven’t lived here that long either” Waverly said with a slight shrug of her shoulders.

 

“You haven’t?” Nicole perked an eyebrow at that. It was surprising to hear “I mean I guess I just assumed you had lived here your entire life and-”

 

“I’m kidding” Waverly giggled very softly. She liked that she could get Nicole on a nervous ramble so easily. “I already told you I grew up here.”

 

“Right” Nicole let out a defeated sigh with a hint of a laugh hanging at the end. She felt so dumb that she let Waverly get her like that. “See? I was paying attention.”

 

“I would hope so. Your job kind of hinges on paying attention to detail, right?”

 

“You have no idea” Nicole whispered almost to herself. Her eyes landed on Waverly just then and she felt that little flutter inside her. It was a feeling she couldn’t really describe. It was like a nervous calm. An anxious soothing. A feeling of being home while at the same time not even knowing where she was at. It tensed her up a bit and a heartbeat later she was completely relaxed. She wondered if that was because of the fact that she was connected to Waverly as her guardian or because of something else entirely.

 

Noticing Nicole had grown quiet, Waverly cleared her throat and offered a shrug “Lucky for you I actually had something in mind. I’m not really sure if you would be into it, though.”

 

“I’m down” Nicole said quickly, eagerly. She realized immediately how fast she had answered and let out a laugh to try and play it off “I just mean I am pretty open minded.”

 

“Good” Waverly bit her lip to fight off a smile. The genuine enthusiasm in Nicole was intoxicating. She was very interested to see how the night would turn out. She loved spending time with new people. If someone had an upbringing completely different than her own she was immediately enthralled. She loved hearing about where people came from and where they were going next. That was probably due to her love of history. But hey what was history without people to live it? She was definitely interested in Nicole’s history. She couldn’t exactly pinpoint the reasoning for that. That was just something about the woman that completely enthralled her in a way no one else ever had.

 

Shaking off the thought, Waverly smiled again and motioned to the door of the apartment. “Are we ready to go?”

 

“Absolutely” Nicole nodded then moved to scoop up her jacket. It was pretty cold at night and she had no idea how long they would be out or where they were going so she decided to go for the heaviest jacket she had. Once she had that in hand she checked for her keys and phone then gave one more nod “Lead the way!”

 

Waverly did so without another moment of hesitation. She didn’t want to offend Nicole but her apartment was depressing. She would definitely have to look into doing something about that. But that was later. Right now she was excited to see where the night would take her and her new friend.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

“Alright” Waverly said with a laugh as she slowly walked next to Nicole down the main street of Purgatory. “I have showed you where to get the best coffee in town. I also showed you where the best burritos are” She lifted her hand to indicate the burrito she held was what she was talking about. “We have one more stop on our Tour-gatory.”

 

“Tour-gatory?” Nicole stifled a laugh at that. “Are you serious?”

 

“It was either that or Purga-TOURy” Waverly rolled her eyes. “I thought Tour-gatory was a little more creative.”

 

“I mean” Nicole nodded while still fighting off a laugh “I have to hand it to you with that one. It is far more creative.”

 

“Shut up” Waverly could see Nicole was fighting back laughter. “You don’t have to like it but you could at least appreciate it since I spent all evening showing you the ins and outs of the town.”

 

“No I like it!” Nicole’s smile faded and was replaced with a bit of panic thinking she had truly offended Waverly. “It’s cute. Tour-gatory. You should probably open a little business where you take tourists along the same path and make the same stops that we did today but only in like…” She shrugged as she thought for a moment then smiled “...a bus.”

 

“Please. Do you think I want all my favorite spots in town overrun with tourists?” Waverly shook her head, pausing to toss her empty burrito wrapper in a trash can, before catching up to Nicole again. “No. What you got to see today was for residence only.”

 

“You certainly know how to make a girl feel special” Nicole gave Waverly a little smirk then looked forward as they continued their leisurely pace down the street. 

 

“I’m just sucking up because you’re a cop” Waverly teased.

 

“Oh I see how it is!” Nicole gasped in an attempt to fake being offended. She glanced back to Waverly and shook her head with amusement “Well now I am going to be keeping an extra good eye on you, Miss Earp. You are trouble.” She smirked to herself. Part of that statement was true. She was keeping an eye on her but not because she was a cop.

 

“I’m an angel. Ask anyone in town they will all agree” Waverly said in an overly cheerful tone. She even gave a playful little skip like a schoolgirl getting away with whatever she wanted because her dad was the principal.

 

“I actually don’t doubt that” Nicole mumbled quietly to herself. There was nothing about Waverly that gave her any pause to think she was anything but a good person. Except maybe the bizarre dreams she had been having lately. But that was something they could visit later.

 

Waverly hadn’t heard Nicole’s mumbling. They had arrived at their last stop and she was too excited to notice anything else. She looked over at Nicole when she stepped up beside her then gave a nod to the building they stood in front of before speaking “This is the original public library from way back when the town was first established.” The way she spoke the words held an air of awe. It was easy to tell Waverly genuinely adored this building.

 

Nicole looked up at the building now and she could tell right away that it was definitely old. It had interesting architecture that was a rare find out in the quickly modernizing world. It was beautiful. Breathtaking, actually.  She could see why Waverly liked it. “Damn” She said softly as her head nodded in approval “It’s really beautiful.”

 

“Yeah it is” Waverly agreed with an almost dreamy sounding sigh. Then she grabbed Nicole’s hand and gave a firm tug to start leading her inside. “Wait until you see how big it is on the inside!”

 

A spark sizzled through Nicole’s nerves when Waverly touched her hand. She looked down in shock at where the tiny girl gripped her. She was so distracted by the touch that her feet had forgotten to move and she nearly tripped when Waverly pulled at her and started inside. She let out a laugh and tried to play it off “Wow you’re stronger than you look.”

 

“You have no idea” Waverly agreed. Just as quickly as she had grabbed Nicole’s hand she had released it in favor of pulling the library doors open and leading them deeper into the building. There was a little foyer with some paintings and murals of the town history but she didn’t stop to dwell on those. She would show Nicole those some other time. No she had something better in mind. So she didn’t stop until they passed through the foyer and into the main part of the library.

 

There in front of them unfolded shelf after shelf filled with books. The shelves were stacked from floor to ceiling, lining every wall, and filling all the space between those walls. They all looked almost too high to ever have a top to them as if they were skyscrapers stretching above crowded streets. It didn’t seem plausible, looking from the outside, that the building could hold this many shelves filled with that many books and yet there it was unfolded before their very eyes.

 

“Holy shit” Nicole mumbled in shock as she looked at all of the books. It looked like something you’d see in a fictional movie. How it unfolded from floor to ceiling in a spectacularly detailed room of old architecture was unreal. It did not seem possible.

 

“I know” Waverly agreed to Nicole’s exclamation with a nod of her own. “There was a town fire not too many years back and somehow this building was untouched. It is one of the few buildings in town that still has every single piece of the original structure in place. It’s never even been renovated.”

 

“Never?” Nicole was surprised at that and looked down to Waverly with wide eyes.

 

“Crazy, right?” Waverly nodded then motioned for Nicole to follow her. She led the two of them down a few small stairs and into the main floor area of the library. She wound her way through the selves as if it were a path she had walked every day of her life. She smiled as they were consumed by the books rising all around them as they traveled through the shelves. It was almost like they were walking through a forest and all around them were trees that stretched to the heavens.

 

Nicole wasn’t used to too much being taller than her so being indoors and being surrounded by taller structures was giving her a weird sense of vertigo. She almost felt like she needed help keeping her balance. She reached out and put a hand on a shelf, sliding it along lightly as they walked, just in case she did lose her footing.

 

Luckily the feeling didn’t last too long. The two of them broke into a clearing. Right in the middle of the library was a few rows of tables where a few scattered people were huddled over their reading material of choice. Near the far left side was the card catalog. Nicole smiled at that. Nowadays most libraries were digitally filed so if you needed to find a book you just typed it into the computer and it told you where it was. The card catalog was primitive compared to that but it gave it a nice, authentic vibe. In fact everything in this library was authentic. It was like she had stepped back in time.

 

“So” Waverly spoke softly now, since they were in a library, and motioned to a table near the back with a stack of books on it already. “I took the liberty of coming here a little earlier and plucking out some of the best books about our town.”

 

“You did?” Nicole asked with a soft smile. That was honestly a really sweet gesture.

 

“I figured you could just look anything you might want to know up online but…” Waverly shrugged and motioned to the stack of books on the table she now stood next to “...the internet doesn’t know it all, you know? Purgatory is an interesting place.”

 

“I am beginning to see that” Nicole smiled and pulled out one of the chairs at the table. She motioned for Waverly to sit in it.

 

Waverly let out a soft laugh, honestly taken by surprise by the gesture, and slid into the seat “Wow what a gentlewoman.”

 

Nicole blushed at that and tried to laugh it away as she moved to take a seat across from Waverly once the girl sat “I am just polite. Besides you have gone out of your way to show me all around town today I think you deserve to take a load off.”

 

“Honestly it was my pleasure” Waverly said sincerely. Her eyes lingered on Nicole across from her with a sweet smile on her lips. She had definitely had one of the best days she can remember having in a long time.

 

“Well I appreciate it” Nicole said with a nod as she settled in her seat. She caught Waverly’s eyes lingering on her and she felt herself go hot on the inside. That feeling returned where she was nervous but calm all at once. She bit her lip and looked down to the books because she was afraid if she let herself she would stare at Waverly all night. “It’s never easy being the new kid in town so I am really glad I had someone who was willing to show me around. I feel really welcome.”

 

“Well good” Waverly whispered and reached for one of the books on the top of the stack. Her eyes still hadn’t left Nicole. The girl was magnetic and she was letting herself consume her energy in the moment. She was hoping it would click for her and she could pinpoint what it was about Nicole that made her feel, well, the way she felt. 

 

Nicole glanced back up and noticed Waverly still staring. She blushed and looked away immediately. She should be a little weirded out by the girl staring at her but she wasn’t. In a way she felt like it was a compliment. That Waverly felt so comfortable around her that she could look at her like that. She cleared her throat and tried to push onward so she didn’t get too consumed by the fact that Waverly was staring. “So where do you think I should start? What is the most interesting thing about Purgatory?”

 

“I didn’t see a curling iron” Waverly blurted out. Her eyes widened in surprise. The thought had been swirling around her head since they had left Nicole’s apartment but she had not expected herself to just toss it out there so randomly.

 

“What?” Nicole’s eyes went wide and she looked at Waverly slightly stunned.

 

“I’m sorry I just..” Waverly let out a sigh and shook her head. She blinked and broke her eye contact with the girl for the first time since they had sat down. “I don’t like liars, Nicole. Okay, I get it you don’t really know me and you don’t really owe me anything but if we are going to actually be friends you can’t lie to me. I hate liars. My life has been filled with liars.” She brushed some of her bangs off the side of her face and behind her ear before continuing “So how did you hurt your arm?”

 

“I..” Nicole stuttered then looked down at her arm. Luckily the sleeve was still down. She reached to her left arm and grabbed it gently as if protecting it from being seen. She looked back up to Waverly and shook her head “Look it’s hard to explain-”

 

“Did someone hurt you?” Waverly cut her off quickly.

 

“What? No” Nicole shook her head. Then she thought about the dream that had caused the burn and shrugged “Not really. Like I said it’s kind of hard to explain.”

 

Waverly eyed her for a few heartbeats. She examined her as if she was trying to decide exactly what it was that Nicole was hiding. She didn’t know why she cared but she just did. After a moment she softened and let out another sigh “I’m sorry that was really personal. You don’t have to tell me.”

 

“No, it’s fine” Nicole shook her head quickly. She felt bad. She wished she could tell Waverly everything. It would certainly make this easier. But she was almost certain that was not allowed. So she relented a shrug of her shoulders “I’ll tell you when I can. I promise. But for now please don’t ask.”

 

“Okay” Waverly nodded. She only agreed so quickly because she knew she had her own secrets. Big secrets. Secrets about herself and her family and this town that would send most people running for the hills. So she accepted that Nicole couldn’t tell her. 

 

There was a bit of an awkward silence as both girls sat with their heads hanging. Nicole felt shame for not being able to be open and honest with her new friend. Waverly felt bad for having pressured a near stranger. So they sat there as the silence thickened around them.

 

Finally, because the deafening sound of nothingness around them was too much to bear, Waverly cleared her throat and spoke softly again “So why did you move here?”

 

“That I can tell you” Nicole said with a nod. “I was recruited by the Sheriff” She puffed out her chest proudly because, well, it was true. “When I heard that there was a chance that I could become Sheriff here, I couldn’t pass it up!” That was partly true. A part truth wasn’t a full lie, right? Wow not lying was really tricky no wonder she sucked at it! She glanced up at Waverly now and put a finger to her lips “No one is supposed to know I’m in line for Sheriff, though. I’m probably stepping on toes so don’t say anything.”

 

“My lips are sealed” Waverly mimicked zipping her lips up then gave Nicole a wink. If there was anyone that could keep a secret it was Waverly Earp. She lifted her hand to her face now, leaning her chin into her hand, and put her elbow on the table top. She smiled and asked a new question “Won’t your family miss you? What did they say about you moving to the middle of nowhere?”

 

“No family” Nicole said with a slight shrug. She drew in a breath and let it out with a sigh “My parents died a few months ago in an accident. I was an only child” She gave a nod to that then smiled “I did leave behind my very best friend in the world, though. She’s been my friend since I was nine. She was like a sister to me. But she wasn’t done with school. She understood why I had to leave. It was kind of sad but we both know we will be friends forever.”

 

“I’m sorry to hear about your parents” Waverly said with a frown. “That must have been hard for you.”

 

“It was. They were incredible parents” Nicole smiled fondly at the memory of her parents. She couldn’t have been any more lucky to have them as parents. “They hated that I was a cop, though” She laughed at that and when Waverly looked curiously at her she shrugged “I pretty much could have gone to school to do anything I wanted. My test scores were through the roof. I learn faster than most people do. But all I’ve ever wanted to do since I could remember was help people.”

 

“That’s noble” Waverly said with a nod. “You are…” She shook her head and breathed out a laugh “...unlike anyone I’ve ever met.”

 

Nicole blushed very softly but the dim light of the library helped to hide it. She just shrugged it off then looked back to Waverly “What about your family?”

 

Waverly looked a little reluctant to talk about her family. Her family was more complicated than even she was aware of at the moment. It wasn’t her favorite subject. “Well I have two older sisters. My mom walked out on us when I was young. My daddy died not long after that. It was my middle sister, Wynonna, who shot him. It was also the same night my oldest sister, Willa, disappeared. Everyone blamed Wynonna for what happened that night. She was an outcast and everyone thought she was crazy. So as soon as she could, she left town, and only just recently did she return.” She gave a shrug as if what she had just said was the most normal story in the world.

 

Nicole blinked just once. She was having a really hard time wrapping her head around what she had just been told. That was a lot to go through for a kid. It was a miracle Waverly seemed so put together. “Wow, that’s…”

 

“A lot” Waverly finished Nicole’s thought with a nod. “Yeah. It’s been weird growing up as the sister of the town priah. I guess that’s why I try and be so nice to everyone. It’s like I am making up for my family’s drama.”

 

“That’s not an easy thing for anyone to go through” Nicole frowned and reach out to put a hand over Waverly’s. There was a little spark of electricity that zapped them both and they pulled their hands apart. Nicole sighed and rubbed at her fingers where the shock at happened “I’m sorry.”

 

“It’s okay. It’s not like there was anything you could do about it” Waverly said with a shrug. 

 

Nicole nodded. If only it had been physical pain. She would have been able to take it away from her.

 

“It’s kind of weird” Waverly continued without much pause now “I’ve always kind of been numb to it, you know? I mean my entire life I have had all these horrible things happen to me and I haven’t really felt anything. I know that it sucks and that I should be sad or upset or mad but I’ve always just kind of been numb. Like, okay, it happened let’s deal with it and move on.”

 

Nicole perked an eyebrow to that. She was starting to realize that she had been taking on the pain of any physical injuries of Waverly her entire life. But the emotional ones? She didn’t think that was tied to her at all. She couldn’t remember feeling sad for no reason. 

 

“Want to hear something really strange?” Waverly whispered now. She had started talking and now her thoughts were just pouring out of her.

 

“Yeah” Nicole nodded quickly as all of her attention now focused on Waverly.

 

“It wasn’t until a few nights ago that I started to really feel anything emotionally. Like out of nowhere I started understanding what it meant to be really sad or really scared. It’s like I just learned what an emotion is.”

 

“A few nights ago?” Nicole whispered again but this time there was a little tremble in her words.

 

Waverly just nodded. She looked around as if checking to see if someone was listening then leaned across the table to draw herself closer to Nicole. When she spoke it was in a whisper soft enough to miss if you weren’t just inches away from her “I was shot in the chest and walked away without a scratch.”

 

Nicole blinked again. She tried to look surprised but how could she be. She knew about the gunshot already. Right on cue the pain in her chest rose from the spot where Waverly had taken the bullet in her dream. She bit her lip and drew in a sharp breath to fight down the pain. When she spoke again she tried to sound curious as she asked “And you think that triggered emotions? Like a near death experience awakened something?”

 

“Not near death” Waverly said with a quick shake of her head. “I was dead. Wynonna held me in her arms. She said I was dead. No breathing and no heartbeat for a full two minutes, at least.” She bit her lip and her eyes stared intensely at Nicole almost like she was scared of what she was admitting. “I died. Then I suddenly came back to life like nothing had happened. Ever since then I can feel things I’ve never felt before.”

 

“Wow” Nicole’s breath shook as she spoke the single word. Her entire body was trembling. It wasn’t because of the story, she knew what had happened already, but it was the intensity of what she was feeling in the moment. She could feel everything that Waverly had experienced that night as if she had been the one to be shot. Emotions and pain and a core quaking sick feeling in the pit of her stomach all rose at once. It was like she was reliving it all over again. She felt herself growing light headed. Her heart was racing. The pain in her chest was overwhelming.

 

Then it went dark and the last thing she remembered before completely passing out was the echoing yells of agony from Wynonna sobbing over her dead sister’s body.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.


	6. Don't even know your power

When Nicole opened her eyes it was bright all around her. She figured she was back in the hospital. She wondered if she had died again. Just the thought of that annoyed her. She really wished she had answers as to what was going on and why she kept fainting. 

 

As the room that Nicole found herself in came into focus she realized she wasn’t in a hospital room. In fact she didn’t seem to be in a room at all. It was just whiteness all around her. There didn’t seem to be walls or doors. There had to be a floor, though, as she was definitely standing on something. 

 

“Hello?” She called out almost cautiously. There was no echo. There was no answer. She turned around a few times to take in her surroundings. Where was she? Had they committed her to a Psychiatric ward where they had ushered her straight to the white room so she couldn’t hurt herself? Did they still do that?

 

“Hello? Is there anyone here? Where the Hell am I?” 

 

“Now I don’t think I raised you to use that sort of language” A voice came out of nowhere. A familiar voice. A voice that Nicole would recognize in a crowd of a million people.

 

“Mom?” Nicole whirled around toward the sound of the voice and almost immediately felt herself start to cry. There in front of her looking rather ethereal was her mother. She felt herself exhale like she had been punched in the stomach “Is that really you?”

 

“Sort of” Her mother spoke with a soft laugh. Her laugh was the sweetest sound in the world at the moment. Nicole couldn’t believe how much she had missed that laugh. 

 

“How are you here?” She asked as she slowly approached her mother in a way that seemed she feared she would flee if approached too quickly.

 

“I am a manifestation created by you” Her mother spoke softly, calmly, with a comforting smile on her lips.

 

“Me?” Nicole perked an eyebrow at that. Why was she suddenly manifesting visions of her dead mom? “Oh no, am I dead?”

 

“Hardly” Her mother laughed again. She motioned just then for Nicole to close the gap that lingered between them. “Come here, my angel.”

 

Without even a beat of hesitation Nicole took the last step between them and fell into her mother’s arms like she had done so many times in her life. She lost all strength and let the dam of sobs she had been fighting back finally break. There in the arms of her mother, or manifestation of her mother but who really cared, she let herself feel it all.

 

No words were spoken by her mother. There wasn’t really any need. What Nicole needed in that moment was to be held, to feel safe and loved, and forget everything bad that was happening for just a split second. So she did. She let her aching heart and body be soothed by the embrace of her mother who, until that very moment, she had yet to fully grieve over.

 

Neither of them really knew how much time had passed as they stood in that embrace. They were in a white space with no walls or doors that Nicole was pretty sure she had manifested as well so did time really matter? It was a construct of man anyway. But when they finally parted Nicole wiped one last tear from her cheek and she felt better than she had in months “So why am I here?”

 

“Always so smart” Her mother replied with that same calming smile. She gave a nod to indicate that Nicole was indeed understanding what was going on. “You have come here for guidance. You didn’t know where else to turn so in the same way you always have you made the answer for yourself.”

 

Nicole simply nodded. Somehow none of this was weird to her. None of it was too much to take in. It all made sense. She was an answer seeker and she understood that this was her unconscious working out what her waking mind could not.

 

“What you’re experiencing is unlike anything known to the powers that be” Her mother spoke without hesitation now that they were on the same page. “You and Waverly have a connection stronger than any we have ever seen.”

 

“Powers that be?” Nicole perked up at that. So there was someone in charge. “Like, God?”

 

“More or less” Her mother shrugged with a soft laugh. “You will understand it all once you return home” Her mother motioned around where they stood and smiled. “But for now you remain in human form because your job is not done.”

 

Nicole nodded at that “I am supposed to protect Waverly.”

 

“She’s important to the future of all humanity, Nicole” Her mother was more serious now. “Though you have never controlled your power to protect her you must do all you can to tune into it now to ensure she survives.”

 

“But how? No one knows how this works” Nicole let out a frustrated breath. “I never know when I’m going to have a dream. Then suddenly I’m there seeing it through her eyes and taking any physical damage and waking up with bruises and burns.”

 

“Like I said you two have a connection stronger than any we have seen. Use it.”

 

“How!” Nicole grunted now as her voice rose. She wasn’t getting any answers.

 

“You’ll figure it out” Her mother spoke calmly still. “I must go now but-”

 

“No, mom, don’t leave me. I need you” Nicole’s voice cracked and trembled. Her eyes immediately flooded with tears. “Please.”

 

“You’ve got this, my angel” Her mother’s voice was starting to fade. So was her form. “I must go but please heed this warning. Your strength will diminish if you continue to take her damage. Keep her out of harm’s way or your life will be extinguished for good this time.”

 

“This time?” Nicole’s eyes went wide in surprise. “What do you mean this time?”

 

“You were granted a second life when Waverly selflessly sacrificed herself to save Wynonna. But it will diminish so please take caution. Humanity needs you.”

 

“Mom?” Nicole sounded panicked now as she watched the heavenly form of her mother start to dissipate like a cloud in the wind. “Mom!” She started to cry again as the woman disappeared right in front of her.

 

“Mom!” Nicole’s eyes shot open. There was a quick beeping near her head. Her eyes were blurred with tears but she could see the watery outlines of faces through the tears.

 

“Oh thank god she’s awake!” Waverly’s voice reached Nicole’s ears first.

 

Nicole’s chest hurt immediately. She reached up and put her hand over the spot. Her body was trembling and the tears that had accumulated trickled down her cheeks. She drew in a few deep breaths but they only added to the pain in her chest.

 

“It’s okay Nicole” A voice she didn’t know came through now. “Just breathe easy and relax. You are in a safe place. We have everything taken care of right now. Just relax.”

 

“Is she alright?” Waverly’s voice was accompanied by the feel of her hand sliding over Nicole’s this time.

 

“What happened?” Nicole finally choked out. Her voice was harsh from the dryness in her throat. She blinked a few times to clear her sight of the last few tears and the room came into focus. 

 

“You fainted” Waverly said before the doctor, who stood at the other side of Nicole’s bed, could answer. She gave Nicole’s hand a squeeze “I was so worried.”

 

“It looks like it was caused by an arrythmia” The doctor continued from what Waverly had started saying. 

 

Nicole looked from the doctor to Waverly. She felt her heart skip a beat when she saw the look of concern on the girl’s face.

 

“See there?” The doctor pointed to the heart monitor screen and nodded “Unusual heartbeats.”

 

Nicole bit her lip and looked back at the doctor. She knew why the screen had just showed an unusual heartbeat and it had nothing to do with a medical condition. “I’ve never had an arrythmia before.”

 

“Could be late onset” The doctor said with a shrug. “When was the last time you had any medical tests run?”

 

“Like last week” Nicole huffed out. “They all came back clean.”

 

“Really?” The surprise from the doctor couldn’t be hidden.

 

Nicole nodded just once. 

 

“Interesting” The man jotted something down on the chart he held then looked back to Nicole. “I would really like to get in contact with the doctor that ran those tests. I would also like to hold you for more testing here.”

 

“No” Nicole said with a soft shake of her head. She looked back to Waverly who was still tightly holding her hand and repeated the word “No.”

 

“What do you mean no?” The doctor asked in complete shock now.

 

“I mean no” She looked back to the doctor as her hand not being held by Waverly reached up and now started to rip off the leads for her heart monitor. “There is nothing wrong with me.”

 

“Nicole don’t you think you should do what he says?” Waverly asked timidly but never relented her grip on Nicole’s hand.

 

“No” Nicole shook her head slightly. She looked between Waverly and the doctor and before the man could speak she continued “Those tests are voluntary. You can’t make me get them. You say I have arrythmia, I say I am fine. I also say I am walking out of here today.”

 

“Miss Haught, I-”

 

“Stop” Nicole lifted her hand toward the man to cut him off. She shook her head again “No disrespect but I am fine.” She smiled now and looked back at Waverly. She felt her heart jump in her chest again before she spoke to her “I saw my mom. She looked amazing. She told me I was going to be okay.”

 

The intensity that Nicole had in her eyes as she spoke of her mother was a lot for Waverly to process. It was almost intimate the way Nicole had shared that information with her. She blushed slightly at the feeling that had risen between them suddenly. An unexplainable closeness that now seemingly just existed. Maybe the most bizarre part of all was how Waverly didn’t even question it. She had seen a lot of things she couldn’t explain ever since her sister had come back to town to start fighting demons so instead of trying to understand it all she just started to accept it. She gave Nicole a smile just then and spoke gently “Mother knows best, right?”

 

Nicole let out a soft laugh at that. The way Waverly’s eyes were locked with her own in that moment provided such a sense of understanding between the two of them. It was as if someone had flipped a switch and they suddenly just got each other. Their connection that they had was instantly front and center. It was there, it was clear, and neither of them seemed to care to ask why. They just accepted it.

 

“I strongly advise against you leaving” The doctor, having been consumed by shock at Nicole denying treatment and blissfully unaware of the moment they girls had just shared, spoke now with a shake of his head.

 

“Got it” Nicole said with a nod as her eyes left Waverly and looked back at the man. “So will you unplug me and un…” She looked at the I.V. in her arm and shrugged “...poke me and let me go? If not I’ll rip it out myself.”

 

“Please don’t” The man reached out to grab Nicole’s arm as if he was afraid she would do it right then and there. “I will have the nurses come release you momentarily. Until then please stay put.”

 

“Thank you” Nicole nodded. She watched the doctor shake his head as he walked out of the room. Once he was gone she looked back to Waverly and her heart fluttered again “I am so sorry I fainted. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

 

“It was fine” Waverly waved it off and gave her a cheerful smile. “I mean it was scary but it’s not the most terrifying thing I’ve ever seen.”

 

“Yeah I’m sure nothing is as terrifying as a fireball coming at you” Nicole mumbled through a laugh. Then she got wide eyed as she realized what she had said. “I mean-”

 

“What?” Waverly looked exactly like Nicole with wide, panicked eyes. They stared at each other and Waverly felt herself starting to breathe a little heavier “What did you say?”

 

Nicole shook her head. She let out a laugh and tried to play it off “I must have dreamed of a fireball after seeing my mom or something.”

 

Waverly didn’t believe Nicole for a second. She hadn’t known the girl for long but she was already starting to learn when she was lying. She drew in a deep breath to calm her panic down and spoke again “What did you mean about a fireball?”

 

Nicole felt guilty. She could see Waverly looking right through her lie and she felt bad about it. But how in the world could she explain what she meant. She drew in a breath and let it out with a heavy sigh before finally speaking softly “When we get out of here I’ll explain it, okay? Just promise me one thing?”

 

Waverly eyed Nicole carefully. She was trying to decide whether Nicole would tell her the truth or if she was stalling to have time to think of a good lie. She went with the former and decided to trust her. “I don’t make promises without knowing what they are first.”

 

“Don’t run” Nicole whispered softly. Her hand turned over under where Waverly held it and she gave an almost desperate squeeze at her words. The look in her eyes silently begged for Waverly to make the promise.

 

Though she had no idea what Nicole would tell her there was something inside her that screamed for her to trust Nicole without hesitation. So her hand returned the squeeze she had received and she nodded before answering firmly “I’m not going anywhere.”

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

“Would you get out of the car?” Waverly asked with a huff as she stood just outside the passenger side window of her jeep looking in at Nicole who was still strapped into the seat.

 

“I don’t know why we can’t just go back to my place” Nicole motioned to the house that they were parked in front of then gave a shrug.

 

“Your place?” Waverly laughed out with a sound of near disgust. “You don’t even have a proper bed! How are you supposed to rest and recover from a fainting episode without the most basic comforts? I’m honestly surprised your lights turn on.”

 

“That’s rude” Nicole scowled at Waverly through the window. They were both shouting because the window was rolled up between them. “Also people in the Medieval times did just fine without electricity!”

 

“We are not in the Medieval times, Nicole!” Waverly yelled out in frustration and tossed her hands in the air. She stepped closer to the door and reached out to pull the handle. She was met with resistance from the locked door. This made her growl and stomp her foot “You are acting like a child. Just get your ass out this instant!”

 

Before Nicole could shout her retort there was a gunshot from the porch of the house. This got both girls’ attention and their eyes turned in that direction. There on the porch stood a very tired and grumpy looking Wynonna with a smoking gun held up into the air. Her eyes narrowed and she looked between the two girls who had been yelling just moments before.

 

“What in the ever living Hell is going on?” 

 

Waverly huffed again and motioned to Nicole in the passenger side of her jeep “She’s being stubborn.”

 

Wynonna waved her sister off as she approached her, having come down off the porch as Waverly had started to explain the situation, and went straight to the stranger in her jeep. She lifted her hand and gave a not so polite knock to the window “Who the Hell are you?”

 

“Officer Haught” Nicole puffed up her chest proudly and slightly defensively because she didn’t know who this woman storming at the car was.

 

Wynonna lifted her hand to cut off the second part of whatever Nicole was about to say. She eyed the girl over the best she could then shook her head “Now I’ve had a run in or two with the law in my time…” She glanced around a few times to see if anyone would call her out on the fact that it had been more than once or twice. But before Waverly could interject she continued “...and usually when you’re in trouble you’re in the backseat of a police car so…” She motioned to the jeep that Waverly had driven them over in and nodded “Since this is neither a police car nor are you in the backseat I am going to ask you to get your ass out of my car.”

 

“Look I don’t want to cause any trouble by-”

 

“Then get the Hell out of my car!” Wynonna cut off Nicole again quickly and shortly. It was obvious she was severely annoyed.

 

Waverly stood there with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face. She did not need Wynonna to fight her battles for her by any means but that didn’t mean she didn’t really enjoy it in the off moments when she did step up and play the role of protective big sister.

 

Nicole opened her mouth to argue again but Wynonna shot her such a harsh stare that she could almost feel her skin sizzling from the heat. She let out a huff and relented her fight. She unlocked the door and slid out with a pout on her lips. She looked at Waverly and shook her head “Seriously I don’t want to impose.”

 

“You aren’t” Waverly started.

 

“Too late” Wynonna grumbled cooly.

 

Waverly rolled her eyes at her sister then looked back at Nicole “Seriously I insist.”

 

“What are you insisting?” Wynonna eyed Nicole again before looking at her sister.

 

“She’s staying the night” Waverly motioned to Nicole and gave a nod.

 

“Oh my god, why?” Wynonna groaned then turned away from them both and stormed back into the house. She did not have the strength for this yet. It was far too early in the morning

 

Nicole perked an eyebrow and watched Wynonna leave. She glanced down to Waverly and motioned at the house where Wynonna had disappeared “I don’t think she likes me.”

 

“She doesn’t like anyone” Waverly swatted the invisible words from Nicole out of the air before reaching out and taking the girl’s hand. She gave a tug to encourage her to follow and was pleased when Nicole gave in and started to walk behind her.

 

There was a silence that fell between them as they moved into the house. Neither of them made much noise as they moved toward the stairs. Waverly lead the way while Nicole immediately started looking around the home once she was inside. It was old but it was fully decorated. Decorated in a way that you could tell it was a family home. This must have been where Waverly grew up. She smiled at that idea. For some reason she liked the thought of seeing Waverly’s childhood home.

 

“In here” Waverly said softly as she motioned into a bedroom once they reached the doorway at the top of the steps. She waited for Nicole to go in before following her. She spoke softly as she looked around the room “This was my oldest sister’s room. I am in the process of kind of going through her things and cleaning it out. I plan on moving back in.”

 

“You don’t live here?” Nicole asked curiously as she moved slowly around the room letting her eyes take in all the details of the things held within the room.

 

“Kind of?” Waverly offered in a shrug. She let out a sigh and shook her head “It’s a long story.”

 

“Well since you’re making me stay the night here…” Nicole mumbled with a roll of her eyes. She thought the gesture was sweet and she appreciated it but she was also not incapable of taking care of herself so she was a little annoyed. “You will have plenty of time to tell me.”

 

Waverly bit her lip. She looked Nicole over once and gave a little nod. She wasn’t sure how well the girl would handle hearing what she had to say but she was right. They definitely needed to talk. It seemed like both of them had a lot going on. She finally let out a soft sigh and motioned to the bed “Well take a seat and get comfortable. I will go make us something to eat since I know you haven’t eaten all night and then we can…” She thought it over for a moment then shrugged “...talk it out.”

 

Nicole gave a nod to that. There was a sort of silent understanding between the two of them in that moment. They both just kind of got the fact that their conversation was going to be heavy. Really heavy. Yet for some reason Nicole was not nervous. Yet. That could change when the time to actually sit down and talk came. But for now she settled onto the bed and watched Waverly leave the room. She let out a sigh once she was alone and her eyes started to look around again. It definitely looked like she was in the room of a twelve year old girl. It was kind of creepy. She hoped Waverly got back soon because she wasn’t sure she could sit there alone for very long.

 

Luckily she didn’t have to sit alone too long at all. A few moments after Waverly left the door was being pushed open and Wynonna was stepping inside. She had her eyes narrowed and she approached Nicole slowly as if she were a bomb that might go off if touched. Once she was just a foot in front of Nicole she put her hands on her hips and spoke sharply “What interest does a cop have with my little sister?”

 

“Uh” Nicole blinked at the abruptness of Wynonna’s interrogation. She let out a little laugh and shook her head “As a cop I have no interest in Waverly other than the statement I took from her the night after the bar fight.”

 

Wynonna barely flinched. She stood there solidly, her eyes never leaving Nicole as she stared her down suspiciously. She gave one nod and spoke again “So Waverly didn’t do anything wrong and isn’t in any sort of trouble?”

 

“Not that I know about” Nicole offered with a shrug.

 

“So why is the new girl that just so happens to be a cop hanging out with the most liked person in town?”

 

Nicole just shrugged at that. She gave Wynonna a smile and let out a laugh “She was kind to me, Wynonna. I am new in town and have no friends so I thought I’d see if she would like to hang out. That’s it, I promise.” So it was kind of a lie but it was also kind of the truth.

 

“How did you know my name?” Wynonna said quickly.

 

Shit. Nicole hadn’t even realized she had used Wynonna’s name when they hadn’t been formally introduced. She played it cool and motioned to the door of the bedroom “Waverly told me.”

 

“Oh yeah” Wynonna’s firm demeanor softened and she rolled her eyes at herself. She motioned to Nicole then and gave a shrug “I’m sorry for the third degree man it’s just…” She sighed and pointed over her shoulder toward the bedroom door and spoke softly “She doesn’t always have the best judge of character. She’s nice and sometimes people take advantage of that. I haven’t always been around to protect her and she’s been through some shit so I guess I’m just being cautious. Plus you’re a cop” She laughed at the last of her words hoping a light-hearted joke would deter from any sign that Wynonna was trying to see if Nicole was after Waverly for a much more sinister reason.

 

“I get it” Nicole shrugged then stood from the bed. She offered her hand out to Wynonna and nodded “I promise I mean Waverly no harm. You have my word. A cop’s promise is solid.”

 

“My ass it is” Wynonna scoffed at that.

 

“Well my word is solid” Nicole gave a firm nod of her head. If only Wynonna knew just how much of Waverly’s best interest she had in mind. Hopefully she could get her to trust that she was on their side. “It’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.” That was a lie too. She was getting good at lying. She had only seen Wynonna in dreams and heard her name in passing but that was just a small technicality.

 

“Yeah whatever” Wynonna took Nicole’s hand and gave it a rough shake before letting it go. “I’ll be watching you Officer…”

 

“Haught. Nicole Haught but you can just call me Ni-”

 

“Ew” Wynonna’s lip curled up at Nicole’s name. “I am not calling you Officer Haught. I’ll go with…” She gave the girl a once over and nodded “..Officer Tall Pants.” She shook her head at that and sighed “Nope that’s shit. I’ll think of something.” With that she turned around and headed out of the room.

 

Nicole was left spinning. She could not believe how different Waverly and Wynonna were. She could definitely see why people were more fond of Waverly. She sat down on the bed again and let out a soft laugh. It was good to finally meet Wynonna. Hearing someone scream out in agony for their dying sister in a weird dream definitely brought a sense of closeness to that person. At least now she had met her and no matter how mean Wynonna might try to be she would never return it. She couldn’t. She had shared an intimate moment with her before they had even met. That tends to change your feelings toward a person forever.

 

Her thoughts were interrupted by Waverly returning to the room. She had a tray of food in her hands and Nicole quickly sprung off the bed to help her. She pushed the door open and gave her a soft smile “You could have asked me to open it for you.”

 

“You’re supposed to be resting” Waverly mumbled and moved over to the table. She set the tray of food down then turned around to look at Nicole. She offered her a slight smile and motioned to the door that Nicole had now abandoned “Wynonna wasn’t awful to you was she?”

 

“Not at all” Nicole shook her head and moved back to the bed to take a seat.

 

“Good” Waverly let out a bit of a relieved sigh. “I begged her to leave you alone. I told her you had just come out of the hospital and you needed to rest but she insisted on making sure you weren’t here to hurt me.”

 

“Something tells me you can fend for yourself” Nicole said with a soft laugh. “Why is she so paranoid? Do a lot of strangers randomly show up here and try to hurt you?”

 

Waverly drew in a sharp breath. She held it as she looked at Nicole and as she let it out she gave a nod. She turned to the tray of food and reached for one of the plates. She offered it to Nicole and gave her a weak smile “Remember when you asked me to promise not to run once you told me whatever it is you have to tell me?”

 

Nicole’s smile faded and she looked at Waverly seriously. Her heart was pounding in her head. This conversation got serious a lot more quickly than she had thought it would. She nodded in acknowledgment to Waverly’s question but didn’t say anything.

 

Waverly’s lips twitched up on one side in a sort of quick flicker of a smile. Then she shrugged and reached for some food for herself. She then moved to sit on the bed next to Nicole and glanced over to her. Her eyes found Nicole’s and immediately showed her hesitation in speaking her next words “I would like to ask you that same courtesy.”

 

Nicole was surprised. What in the world could Waverly have to tell her that would cause her to run? Then a flash of the man Wynonna had shot being swallowed by the ground came to mind and she immediately understood. What Waverly had to say was probably hard to believe. But she gave the girl a smile and a slight nod “I’m not asking for a lot. Just that you’re honest with me.”

 

Waverly nodded at that. She looked back at her plate of food that was resting on her lap and drew in a deep breath. She wasn’t sure that Wynonna would be happy about her telling Nicole what was going on but she couldn’t keep it to herself anymore. She knew they needed help and she had a feeling that Nicole was just the right person for the job.

 

She looked back up at Nicole and before she could talk herself out of saying anything she was blurting out the words “Wynonna and I hunt down and kill demons.”

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 


	7. You've got a hold of me

Nicole just stared at Waverly unblinking for a few moments. Half of her was letting what Waverly had just blurted out sink in and the other half was relieved that the confession was just odd enough that her own might not sound too wild. Finally after several emotions and thoughts swirled inside her she cracked a slow smile and breathed out a soft laugh “Okay that explains so much.”

 

“Wh-” Waverly blinked in surprise and huffed out a confused breath. She shook her head just once and tried again “what?” 

 

Nicole just shrugged and held her smile. She felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest. She had been sure Waverly would run for the hills if she had found out she was in town to protect her but now she felt that she might accept it so much easier considering her own life wasn't normal. 

 

When Nicole just shrugged Waverly let out a baffled laugh “Well this is certainly not the response I had expected. What do you mean this explains so much?”

 

Nicole just shrugged again. How did she put into words what she meant? Her eyes dropped to her hands in her lap as she thought about it for a moment. Her eyes landed on the injury from the last dream she had and she smiled as she lifted her arm and motioned to the barely noticeable burn scars “The fireball.”

 

Waverly blinked again. Her heart twisted in her throat as she thought about the last time she had gone out demon hunting with Wynonna. They had, in fact, encountered a demon that could breathe fire. It had caught her off guard and blown a huge fireball in her direction. She had shielded her face with her arm and come away unscathed. But how in the world did Nicole know that? She shook her head just once, her confusion growing by the moment, and breathed out again “What are you talking about?”

 

Nicole’s smile faded a little bit. She could see the confusion building on Waverly’s face and she worried maybe Waverly would not be as cool about her own confession. She chewed her bottom lip nervously for just a split second before her hand reached out and she took a hold of Waverly’s gently. There was a slight spark between their skin when they touched but for the first time neither of them pulled back from it. Nicole looked from where their hands held together up to find Waverly’s awaiting, curious eyes and she let out a heavy sigh “This is going to sound super weird.”

 

“I hunt demons” Waverly reiterated with a flutter of her eyelids. “A fact that you seem to be breezing by without much acknowledgment of so I am very curious as to what it is you have to tell me that could possibly sound as remotely weird as what I have just told you.”

 

Nicole nodded just once. In any other circumstance it would be incredibly unbelievable to hear that someone hunted demons. But this was not just any other circumstance. She drew in a long breath and let it out slowly before giving Waverly a soft smile “Don’t you think it’s weird I knew about the fireball?”

 

Waverly nodded just once. She studied Nicole for a moment as if trying to guess how she had known that but instead of speaking again she stayed quiet.

 

“Well” Nicole shrugged and gave Waverly’s hand a squeeze in an attempt to give herself some strength to push forward. How was she going to explain this? It was so beyond comprehension that if she had not experienced it for most of her life she would never believe it. She just shook her head and gave in trying to be eloquent in the matter and decided on something plain and simple “I am your guardian angel and I have been protecting you from pain for the entirety of your life.” Okay so it wasn’t that plain and simple but it was right to the point at least.

 

Waverly blinked. She stared blankly at Nicole. She felt herself go warm. Then a shiver slid up her spine. She blinked again and tilted her head to the side as if looking at Nicole sideways would help her understand better. Was this a joke? Her head shook and finally she let a smirk move over her lips “Did Wynonna put you up to to this?”

 

“What? No” Nicole’s face fell into a frown and her head shook. “Waverly I just now met Wynonna, I swear.”

 

Waverly eyed Nicole again, her smile holding on her lips, before she shook her head and laughed “No I have to admit this is good. She really got me. I am going to get her back so bad.”

 

“Waverly, hey” Nicole gave her hand a tight squeeze. Her eyes held a firm look as she stared at Waverly seriously. “This isn’t a joke. I am serious. That’s why I’m here. That’s why you can get punched in the eye and walk away without a scratch. It’s why-”

 

“Very funny” Waverly slid her hand out of Nicole’s and stood up now. She backed away from Nicole and put her hands on her hips before looking at the girl in amusement. “You’re good, you’re really good. Wynonna has been freaked out about me apparently dying and she hired someone to befriend me and mess with my head about it until I took it seriously.”

 

“Waverly listen to me” Nicole was distressed now. She was starting to panic. Was Waverly really going to be able to accept this? She got up from the bed now and took the single step over to the smaller girl before reaching her hands out and taking a hold of one of Waverly’s again. As soon as her two hands engulfed the smaller one there was another spark. Her eyes lit up and she smiled as she looked up from the touch to Waverly’s eyes “You feel that? It happens every single time we make contact. That is our connection. It’s real.”

 

“Who-” Waverly ripped her hand away from Nicole now and her face dropped away all amusement. She scowled now and took a step backwards. She carefully looked Nicole over as if she were afraid of her now “Who are you and what are you playing at? Was that some sort of line to get in my pants or something because it’s not going to work!”

 

“Waverly, please” Nicole’s breath sounded desperate as she spoke now. Her eyes never left Waverly. She didn’t get closer to her though. She stayed where she stood. She did not want to freak Waverly out more than she apparently already had. She put her hands up, palms facing Waverly, in a gesture of surrender “Just listen to me for like two seconds. Please.” She nearly choked on the last word. She was terrified Waverly was about to flee.

 

Waverly’s head shook just once and she took another step backwards but she did not flee. Her eyes stayed on Nicole and the moment the girl pled with her to stay she saw the sincerity in her eyes and that was the reason she did not leave the room. Her face softened from the look of anger to a light caution and her arms slowly folded across her chest. She gave a single nod as she examined Nicole’s defeated posture before finally letting out a sigh “Convince me. You have one minute.”

 

Nicole couldn’t explain how relieved she was. Her heart instantly began to race in her chest. She cleared her throat and spoke softly and evenly “I know it sounds unbelievable and I would have never thought it was true until earlier this week. But I had this dream of this man telling me my destiny was in Purgatory, a place I didn’t even know existed until then, and when I woke up I knew I had to come here. So I packed up everything I could fit into my truck and came here blindly. The man in my dream? Turns out he is the sheriff in this town and he called me here to fulfill my destiny.”

 

Waverly’s eyebrow perked a little. She was listening but she was still not convinced.

 

Feeling like she was rambling, Nicole swallowed the nervous lump that had formed in her throat and pushed on “I have been having dreams about someone else’s life for as long as I can remember. I thought I was crazy. I have been to so many different types of doctors and they have all tried to put me on drugs to fix it. But I knew it was real. I don’t know how but I just knew I wasn’t making it up. Then I came here and I met you and the moment I saw you, I…” She stopped and her worried look faded slightly as a soft smile grew on her lips. She nodded once and chanced taking a step toward Waverly. “I passed out that first morning we met because of the strength of our connection, not because I forgot breakfast. And I know you told me you hate liars but Nedley made me swear not to tell anyone and-”

 

Waverly held up a hand in a gesture to stop Nicole’s ramblings. She stared at the woman standing in front of her and took her time to look her over, really look her over, as if she would be able to find some sign to indicate she was lying. She had to find a sign of a lie because this was all too much, even for her. After a moment she cleared her throat and spoke softly but firmly “Nedley called you here?”

 

Nicole nodded quickly at that.

 

Nedley was one of the only people in this town that had not completely treated Wynonna like a leper when their family drama had happened all those years ago. He was by all accounts a good and honest man. Waverly thought it over for a second before nodding slightly “Let’s say I am on the verge of believing you. How do I know for sure this isn’t some elaborate set up by my sister? She could have told you all of these details about Nedley and everything just to really sell the story.”

 

“About ten years ago, I was fifteen so you had to have been like twelve, right?” Nicole asked and when Waverly nodded she continued quickly “You got in a fight at school because someone was calling Wynonna a freak and asking when you were going to finish the job and join her in the loony bin. They shoved you backwards and you hit your head on a chair in the lunchroom, remember?”

 

Waverly’s entire demeanor changed. Her heart started to thunder almost painfully in her chest as the memory came back to her. How did Nicole know that? She had never told Wynonna that story. She reached to the back of her head and felt the soft lump that was still there from all those years ago. “The doctor said it was a miracle I hadn’t cracked my skull open. Just two stitches and I was good.”

 

Nicole nodded just once. She straightened up a little now that she was not pleading for Waverly to stay. She kept her voice soft and chanced another step toward the girl “I woke the next morning with a headache I couldn’t explain. I had it all day.”

 

“You dreamed that?” Waverly breathed out the words in disbelief. Another chill ran up her spine. It all sounded unreal.

 

Nicole nodded again. She licked her lips and took one more step to Waverly. She was within reach now and decided to slowly extend her hand for the girl to take if she so chose to do so “I have journals filled with dreams from events in your life. Nedley has them in his office right now and you are welcome to read through them.”

 

Waverly eyed Nicole’s outstretched hand. She slowly let her gaze move from her fingers to her wrist and up along her arm. She traced the crook of her elbow, her bicep, and finally her shoulder. When her eyes dared reached Nicole’s face she was greeted with a calm and comforting gaze from the girl. It warmed Waverly in an instant. The look in Nicole’s eyes reiterated what her words had said. Nicole was there to protect her.

 

“How is this possible?” She finally choked out the words as her hand reached out for Nicole’s now. As soon as their fingertips touched the accompanying electric spark was felt. Waverly bit her lip but did not pull her hand back. Instead she laced her fingers with Nicole’s and gave a very soft laugh “You’re really a guardian angel?”

 

“Yours” Nicole corrected her quickly as her hand tightened around Waverly’s as their fingers slid together. A shiver took over her entire body but she didn’t fight it. Instead she embraced it. She had to heed her mother’s words. She had to start using the connection she shared with Waverly in order to help all of humanity. “I am here for only you.”

 

Waverly was helpless at the moment. Helpless to fight the way Nicole’s gaze was making her stomach twist. Helpless to letting the rational side of her tell her this could not be true. Helpless to the thundering of her heart against her chest. Helpless against the words Nicole seemed to purr at her in just the right way. So instead of fighting she gave into it and let it consume her. She gave a single nod and took the small step needed to completely close the space between them. She felt the hand holding Nicole’s squeeze tightly as the other lifted to gently caress a few fingertips delicately across the underside of Nicole’s chin. She smiled at the shiver she saw her touch cause as her eyes lifted to meet Nicole’s never wavering gaze 

 

There was a moment between them. It lasted only a few shallow breaths, the length of a few fluttered heartbeats, but it was a moment that seemed to clarify everything between them. Their eyes met, they stood together in a near embrace, hands gripped tightly and lips just an exhale apart, and they both knew. They both knew without a shadow of a doubt that this crazy notion that the two of them were connected on another worldly level was absolutely true. They couldn’t explain it yet they both just understood it. In a flash it all made sense.

 

Then there was a crash that rose from the kitchen below them and the moment was gone. Their hands released and their gazes broken. Waverly whirled around toward the direction of the sound. She stepped away from Nicole toward the bedroom door and called out “Wynonna? Is everything alright?”

 

“I know you’ve got a guest, babygirl, but we’ve got visitors!” Wynonna’s shouted voice somehow sounded calm but serious all at once.

 

“Shit” Waverly whirled around and looked at Nicole with wide eyes. She was stunned. She had not intended for Nicole to ever see her and Wynonna fighting demons. Yet it seemed the demons had other plans. “I’m sorry, it sounds like she needs my help. You…” She shrugged and motioned to the bed behind where Nicole stood “...stay and rest and… I don’t know!”

 

“Are you nuts?” Nicole said with a laugh. She quickly rushed over to the window and looked down. She couldn’t see anything yet. Her eye did catch sight of the jeep they had arrived in and she whirled around with excitement in her eyes “My bag is still in your jeep. I have my gun in there. I can help.”

 

“Your gun won’t kill them if they’re demons” Waverly stammered out quickly.

 

“But it will slow them down. Come on” Nicole rushed toward the bedroom door, grabbing Waverly’s hand on the way by. She led them to the top of the stairs and paused to listen. She heard another crash and looked over at Waverly “Distract them long enough for me to get to my gun. Just be careful.”

 

“Are you sure?” Waverly looked both surprised and worried.

 

“I’m here to protect you, Waverly.” Nicole nodded firmly then smiled “And I am a cop. It’s what I do. Now go.”

 

Waverly smiled slightly at Nicole. She was brave and she was funny and surprisingly not at all worried about facing down demons. She had to admit it was admirable. So instead of arguing any longer she nodded and hurried down the stairs. She was immediately greeted by the sight of Wynonna pinned under the overturned kitchen table with one of the most hideous creatures she had ever seen standing above her sister.

 

Out of reflex she reached for the nearest object that just so happened to be her hand blender. It wasn’t plugged in but it had small blades. So she held it in her hand like a knife and yelled at the creaturer “Hey ugly, when a girl says no she means no!” Then she lunged at the creature, leading with the blades of the blender, stabbing it the best she could into the back near what she thought might be a spine.

 

Nicole waited until she heard the howl of the creature before she took the chance to run out of the front door. She was glad nothing more seemed to be waiting outside. She quickly made her way to the jeep and found her gun in the bag that Waverly had made her pack before coming over to recover from her fainting spell. How silly that all seemed now. She shook off the thought and checked her gun. It was loaded and ready. Without any more hesitation she rushed back into the house.

 

“Where…” Waverly had leaped onto the creature’s back and was now pummeling it was a pan she had managed to grab “.....is….” she called out to Wynonna between landing blows with the pan to the creature’s head “......Peacemaker?”

 

“If I knew don’t you think I would have used it by now?” Wynonna yelled back from her hands and knees where she frantically searched the rubble that was strewn about the kitchen floor for her gun.

 

“Well can you…” Waverly grunted as she was tossed side to side on the back of the beast who was trying to shake her free. “....put a little pep…” She squeaked as the pan she was using flew from her hands now “....in your step?”

 

“You know I hate pep!” Wynonna yelled. She saw a shiny handle poking out from under the fridge and she smiled. “Gotcha!” She lunged for the gun. As soon as her hand wrapped around the handle she heard a gunshot and her eyes went wide. That did not come from her.

 

There was a thud and a gross slosh as blood poured out of the creature’s head onto the floor. Waverly, who had been surprised by the gunshot, looked up from where she had landed on the creature when it fell face first onto the floor and turned her head to see Nicole standing in the doorway of the kitchen. She blinked a few times and crawled to her feet in a hurry “Okay so maybe your gun can help just a little bit.”

 

“Best shot at the academy” Nicole boasted with a smirk. Then she took a moment to actually take in the scene and let it soak in. There was a huge orge looking thing laying in the middle of a dismantled kitchen floor with what looked like purple blood oozing from it’s head wound. Her eyes went wide and she looked between Waverly and a very confused looking Wynonna “Wait, what is that?”

 

“Shit that was a Hell of a shot” Wynonna said with a laugh as she crawled to her feet and brushed herself off. 

 

“Are you alright?” Waverly looked at her sister in concern as she too brushed the dust off her clothes once she had dismounted the beast.

 

“Peachy” Wynonna smiled and spun Peacemaker around her finger by the trigger before looking down at the creature that had attacked her. “Who do you think sent this one?”

 

“Who knows” Waverly said with a shake of her head. She stepped around the down monster’s head to get a better look and shrugged “I don’t think it’s totally dead though. Look” She pointed to the shoulders of the beast that were still moving with each shallow breath it took.

 

“Should we give him to BBD or should I….” Wynonna smirked and pointed Peacemaker at the creature, watching the gun light up a fiery red color.

 

“Guys!” Nicole said sharply as she stared at the huge thing on the ground. When both of the sisters looked up she shook her head and pointed at the beast before looking at the sisters “What is that?”

 

“Dunno” Wynonna said with a shrug while still pointing Peacemaker at the creature.

 

“It’s fine” Waverly put her hand on Wynonna’s gun and pushed until she lowered it. She then looked up at Nicole and offered a crooked smile “Today has just been filled with unbelievable truths, hasn’t it?”

 

“That is a demon?” Nicole mumbled in disbelief with a motion to the monster.

 

“Again, dunno” Wynonna repeated blandly. “Do you have hearing problems, sharp shooter?”

 

“Sharp shooter?” Nicole perked an eyebrow at Wynonna.

 

Wynonna smirked and used her foot to nudge at the spot in the creature’s head where the blood was coming out. This caused the thing to groan but not stir. Wynonna shrugged at the fact that it was still clinging to life then looked back up at Nicole “Where did you learn to shoot like that?”

 

“Police academy” Nicole repeated her sentiment from earlier with a roll of her eyes. She then shook her head as if pushing away that entire subject and refocused her eyes on Waverly. “This stuff is the kind of stuff you deal with?”

 

“Not always” Waverly shrugged. She glanced at the monster then back to Nicole with a half smile “Usually they are in human form and only possess super strength and bad breath. But sometimes they are….” She motioned to the floor again and nodded “...not human.”

 

Nicole blinked. When Waverly had told her that they fought demons she didn’t really know what she had expected. She had seen one of them breathe fire at Waverly and she still didn’t really believe that demons existed. But here she was, staring at the one she had actually shot, and she was stunned. This was by far the weirdest week of her life.

 

“It’s alright. It’s a lot to take in. You get used to it” Waverly nodded and patted Nicole’s back before turning to look back to her sister “Let’s take it in so BBD can try and figure out where it came from.”

 

“Boo” Wynonna’s lip curled up at the corner out of dislike. “You know I like when they get all roasted in the floor.” She looked back at the creature once more and let out a sigh of longing because she did not get to kill it before shrugging off the thought. She looked back up and her demeanor changed. She moved toward Nicole, lifting Peacemaker to take aim at her “Speaking of…”

 

“Woah, hey!” Nicole put her hands up as a form of surrender and her eyes grew wide out of fear. “Take it easy!”

 

“Wynonna!” Waverly reached out and tried to push the gun down.

 

Wynonna quickly side stepped her sister and got close enough to push the barrel of Peacemaker right against Nicole’s left temple above her ear. She eyed the gun for a moment and when it did not turn colors and light up she dropped her arm and let the gun dangle at her side. She gave Nicole a bright smile and laughed lightly “Sorry man can’t be too careful these days.”

 

Nicole stood there frozen. She had never been more scared in her entire life. She blinked a few times but didn’t move.

 

“Really?” Waverly growled at her sister and gave her a firm shove before turning to look at Nicole. The poor girl looked petrified. She frowned and gently put a hand to Nicole’s cheek and tried to catch her eyes “I’m sorry she’s so paranoid. She didn’t mean to scare you.”

 

“What the Hell?” Nicole finally choked out. Her eyes shifted to look at Waverly as her hands dropped from where she had been holding them up. She shook her head and her gaze shifted to Wynonna. She scowled at the woman fiercely “Don’t you ever pull a gun on me again!”

 

“Relax I was making sure you weren’t a demon” Wynonna said nonchalantly as she looked down at Peacemaker. “Or you know…” She motioned to the thing on the floor and shrugged “...something else.”

 

“You could have asked! Or warned me!” Nicole barked out loudly.

 

“More fun this way” Wynonna looked up at Nicole with an amused smirk. She moved now to walk passed Nicole, using the barrel of Peacemaker to lightly graze against her cheek as she walked by. “Let’s get this ass zit to BBD.” With that, she walked through the house and out the front door.

 

Nicole had pulled her face away from the barrel of Wynonna’s gun when she had touched her cheek with it. She was fuming. She was not at all amused. She looked down at Waverly and shook her head as anger raged in her eyes “What is her problem? She might be the rudest person I have ever met!”

 

“I know I’m sorry. She has trust issues and Peacemaker can tell if someone is evil” Waverly frowned and stepped away from Nicole since she was obviously not doing well at comforting her. She stepped around the still slightly breathing creature and sighed “She means well. You’ll warm up to her in no time. Now come on” She motioned to the thing on her kitchen floor and looked up at Nicole “Help me get him in the back of the jeep?”

 

Nicole wanted to argue but she took a breath and remembered she was not there to discuss Wynonna’s poor manners. She was there to help Waverly and at the moment she needed help with what looked like a troll on steroids. So she swallowed her anger and went to work trying to figure out how the two of them were going to manage to get something the size of a boulder into a jeep. She would definitely have to have a talk with Wynonna at a later date. She would not put up with that sort of behavior from anyone.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

  
  



	8. Even though you don't mean to hurt me

“Sooooo…” Waverly drew out the word with a smile as she slowly slid her hand across the top of Nicole’s desk. She rounded the side of the desk to face where Nicole sat before leaning her backside against the desk next to her “Sorry that our big unwelcome visitor from this morning caused you to have to work overnight.”

 

“Oh it’s okay” Nicole said with a shrug as she looked slowly over Waverly’s form that was leaned against her desk before bringing her eyes up to meet her gaze. She gave a soft smile then looked around the darkened and mostly empty police station. “To be honest I would much rather it be me watching the station at night than anyone else. Can you imagine if one of those big guy’s brothers or something came looking for it? Everyone else here might die of fright. At least I know that the secret thing we are protecting is not of human origin.”

 

“That is true” Waverly said with a nod. Her smile had not faded since she had come into the station to visit Nicole. She looked around now and took in the eerie silence of the empty station before slowly looking back to Nicole. “So I have a question.”

 

Nicole let out a soft laugh. She had turned her attention back to the paperwork she had been working on in the momentary silence that had fallen between them. But now she looked up and offered another smile to Waverly “What’s up?”

 

Waverly chewed her lip as she tried to think about how to word her question. It was still weird, the whole concept that Nicole was her guardian angel, and she was trying to be open minded about it. She still had her doubts though. It could be a really elaborate prank. “So you said you have been essentially absorbing all of my pain for my entire life, right?”

 

Nicole nodded slowly, eyeing Waverly a little carefully, not really sure what she was getting at. “Basically, yes.”

 

“So if I were to say…” Waverly looked around the station again for a moment before spotting something she could use. She quickly scrambled over to the nearby desk, picked up the item, then came right back to Nicole. She showed her the stapler she had just picked up and perked an eyebrow curiously “...just send one of these staples into my hand you would feel it too?”

 

Nicole perked an eyebrow at the stapler. She eyed it carefully then slowly looked at Waverly with a bit of worry in her eyes. “Essentially that is how it works, yes. But I really wish you woul- OUCH!” She howled out as pain shot through the center of her left palm suddenly. She grabbed hold of her hand and cradled it against herself as if protecting it from the pain.

 

Waverly’s eyes went wide in shock. She froze. Her left palm was face up, staple sticking out of it, and her right hand held the stapler. She had swung it with all her might at her hand but had not expected that to happen to Nicole so quickly. The stapler fell from her hand and landed on the floor with a thud as she stared in horror at Nicole in pain.

 

“Are you kidding me?” Nicole growled and looked down at her hand. There was nothing there, as she had expected, but as she stared at the spot where the pain had radiated she saw two small red dots start to form. She bit her lip at the sting that was slowly starting to fade and looked up at Waverly. She shook her head and turned her left palm to face the other girl and shrugged “See? I now have a staple mark.”

 

“Holy shit” Waverly breathed out in disbelief. She looked down at her own left palm and the staple that was stuck firmly there. It had barely even made her flinch. It was like a quick pinch and that was all the pain she had felt. She let out a soft laugh and lifted her palm to show Nicole. Her shock faded slowly and was replaced with amusement as her eyes flickered back and forth between their two palms “I can not believe that really just happened!”

 

“I can” Nicole grumbled softly. She moved her left hand so it was side by side with Waverly’s. Her hand was red and the two dots just a few centimeters apart mimicked the exact placement of the staple in the other woman’s hand. She shook her head again, glad it was just a staple and nothing more, before lifting her eyes to give Waverly a bit of an annoyed scowl “Do you believe me now?”

 

“I’m sorry” Waverly frowned when she saw the look on Nicole’s face. She had not meant to upset her. “Honestly, can you blame me for being skeptical? I mean it sounds really far fetched.”

 

“Believe me, I know. But it’s real” Nicole sighed and dropped her left hand enough to wrap around Waverly’s. She held the stapled palm up still, angling it a bit toward her face, before her other hand lifted in order to grip the tiny staple. “Are you satisfied?” She mumbled out as she pinched the staple and with one quick tug watched it come out of Waverly’s palm. She perked an eyebrow and looked up at Waverly curiously “Did you feel that?”

 

“No” Waverly shrugged. She pulled her hand gently from Nicole’s and lifted it to inspect it. There was barely even a mark. She shrugged and looked at Nicole with a sheepish grin “And yes I am satisfied now. That doesn’t mean I am not still completely baffled that this is at all possible but at least I believe it now. I’m sure I’ll get used to the idea soon enough.”

 

“Good but in the meantime…” Nicole lifted her left palm to show Waverly the red marks before letting out a soft sigh “Take it easy on me, yeah?”

 

“Sorry” Waverly pouted out her lips before they turned up into a smile. She could tell that Nicole was a little annoyed but she was at least not mad at her. She reached out and gently took a hold of the hand she had indirectly injured and pulled it close. She inspected the small red dots then slowly lifted Nicole’s palm to her lips, touching a soft kiss to the marks, and giving a nod “There, all better.”

 

The kiss to her palm sent a shiver through Nicole’s spine. Her palm tingled and it had nothing to do with the staple mark. This was a sensation she couldn’t really explain. It felt like fireworks radiating from where Waverly’s lips had touched her skin. Not hot fireworks, though. Just the crackling part. The part that made people go “ohhhh” and “ahhhh” as they lit up the sky. She bit her bottom lip and shyly looked up at Waverly with a slight nod “Yeah that definitely feels a whole lot better.”

 

Waverly felt it too. The fireworks. She felt them on her lips. She blinked in surprise at the little tingle and lifted her hand to let her fingertips touch where her lips where the tingle was fading. She smiled behind her fingers and eyed Nicole curiously “What was that?”

 

Nicole shook her head and blushed slightly because of the way Waverly was smiling at her. It made her heart twist in her chest. She drew in a deep breath and just shrugged before breathing out slowly “I have no idea. Probably just another side effect of us being in contact with one another. Like when we get a little static shock when we touch.”

 

Waverly nodded again slightly and reached her hand out now. She slowly let her fingers brush over Nicole’s hand again and was greeted with the usual little spark. She bit her lip and let out the tiniest laugh as her eyes lifted to meet Nicole’s “This is just so wild.”

 

“Tell me about it” Nicole whispered softly. It was quiet in the station so her whisper was easily heard. Her eyes dropped and she watched Waverly gently stroking her fingers against her wounded palm and she felt another shiver slide through her body. The electricity that was surging through them in that moment was almost too much yet felt natural all at the same time. It was almost a new form of intimacy the two of them were discovering in that moment. She bit her lip at the thought and lifted her eyes to find that Waverly had been watching her. She blushed at that and looked away with a shy laugh “Makes you wonder if we will get used to the little sparks or they will fade over time.”

 

“I hope not” Waverly spoke just as softly as Nicole. Her eyes had not left the other woman’s face the entire time her fingers traced along Nicole’s hand where it had come to rest on the top of the desk. She was watching the way her touch affected the other woman. She could see how Nicole was taking in her touch and processing all of the sensations that came with it. There was something deeper going on in her head and she wanted to see how deep she could dig into that. “What are you thinking about?”

 

Nicole just shrugged at the question because she couldn't even imagine where to start with what she was thinking. There was still a lot to process and more was coming at her by the day. Her mind was in a constant whirlwind. She let out a sigh as her hand turned over under Waverly’s touch and she gently wrapped her fingers around that hand. 

 

She lifted her eyes up as she held Waverly’s hand in hers and just shrugged again “My entire life has been filled with all of this unknown and now that I've been told what's going on it seems like there are even more unknowns and it's all overwhelming you know?” She smiled slightly and gave Waverly’s hand a squeeze before continuing her thought “But I feel like as long as I'm in this with you it's all going to be alright.”

 

Nicole's words made Waverly’s heart flutter. There was such an intensity behind them. Truthfully she understood how Nicole felt. It had been less than twenty four hours since learning that she had an actual angel looking over her and although it was all still so surreal just being near Nicole made her feel like it was going to be alright. She smiled as her eyes fluttered but her gaze did not break from Nicole's as she spoke “I feel it too. I've never felt this immediately close or safe with anyone before. It's a lot to process but at the same time it feels right. It's so weird to have such polarizing emotions all at once.”

 

Nicole laughed and let her hand squeeze Waverly’s once more “Welcome to my world. I've been on a constant emotional roller coaster since meeting you. But…” she paused and gave Waverly a sincere smile before lowering her voice to speak more seriously “...I know that whatever happens we are going to be get through it. I just feel it.” She used the hand not holding Waverly’s to gently come and rest over her own heart before nodding firmly “I feel it right here.”

 

Waverly bit her lip as her eyes followed Nicole’s hand to cover at her heart. She felt her own heart race when Nicole spoke with such certainty. It was almost overwhelming how much emotion was flowing between them. It was as if they were feeling what the other was, two entities sharing every tiny emotion, and the more time they spent close to one another the stronger that feeling got. 

 

Waverly drew in a shaky breath and though a big part of her was terrified of what she was feeling there was another side, the stronger part of her, that wanted to push further so she could learn even more. So although part of her screamed to stop and step away, she ignored it and spoke again without thinking “If you can feel my pain does that mean you can feel my pleasure, too?”

 

Though the word pleasure is not inherently sexual it made Nicole blush all the same. The idea that she would share any form of pleasure with the beautiful girl sitting on top of her desk holding her hand was almost too much to handle for her. She licked at her lips and although her cheeks blazed red at the thought she tried to push passed it. She cleared her throat and spoke as strongly as she could though most of her voice ended up caught in the bubble that had formed suddenly in her windpipe “I- I don’t think I’ve ever experienced any of your pleasure before. No.”

 

Waverly bit her lip. With each passing moment that they were in such close proximity the energy, or whatever you could call it that drew them to be able to feed off each other’s emotions, was growing stronger. She could feel each spark sizzle out of her fingertips whenever Nicole gave her hand a squeeze. She could feel a surging swell of what could only be described as magnetic attraction growing in the small space between their bodies. Her heart was beating so fast now she wondered if Nicole’s heart was being bruised by the thundering against her ribs. 

 

Timidly her free hand lifted to lightly brush against Nicole’s cheek. Sparks sizzled against her skin. Waverly smiled softly and caught Nicole’s gaze as her attention turned to the touch. Waverly bit her lip again and nodded “What if we both experience the same pleasure at the same time? Do you think it would be multiplied?”

 

“Wh-what?” Nicole could barely stammer the word as her entire face burst into a fiery blush. Her eyes went wide and she froze. She couldn’t move. She didn’t want to move. She could see Waverly’s face drawing closer to her own and although a part of her knew she shouldn’t let it happen the other part of her was screaming for it to. 

 

It was endearing the way Nicole stiffened a little at the very idea of what Waverly had spoke about. It made Waverly smile. This woman in front of her was genuinely the nicest person she had ever met in her entire life and to top it all off she was literally put on this earth for Waverly. She was hers, completely, and maybe it was selfish of her to admit it but Waverly liked the idea. More than liked it, actually. No one had ever put her as the focus of their attention. It had always been about her family, her sisters, and her mother. She had never been the Earp of choice, so to speak. But now it was all about her. This person was there specifically for her and she wanted nothing more than to fully enjoy the attention. Maybe that made her selfish. But maybe it was exactly what she was meant to do.

 

So before she could talk herself out of it she decided to let herself just feel. To follow her gut or her heart or whatever it was that was surging through her at the moment causing her to feel more emotions than she knew ever existed. She let herself go. She let herself enjoy. She leaned in closer and when Nicole sat up a little straighter in her chair, helping to close the gap, she stopped fighting and let herself be consumed by what she wanted most in the moment. 

 

“Hey, Waves, I- Woah!” Wynonna came around the corner into the police station at that exact moment. Her eyes went wide and she turned around quickly to shield herself from what she had just walked into. 

 

Waverly nearly jumped out of her skin at the sudden appearance of her sister. It caused her to nearly topple off the desk backwards as she pushed away from Nicole out of reflex of being caught. She managed to get to her feet and stand upright trying to look as innocent as possible.

 

Nicole wasn’t as lucky. The sudden shove backwards combined with the surprise of Wynonna walking in had caused her entire body to become disoriented. Though she had been mostly sitting, leaning up out of her chair to meet Waverly half way, the chair had not caught her when Waverly had shoved her backwards. Instead she had come down so fast on the edge of her seat that the chair rolled out from under her weight and she landed on the hard cement floors of the police station right on her ass with a thud.

 

“What the Hell is going on in here?” Wynonna asked with her back still turned toward her sister.

 

Waverly bit her lip and glanced from her sister to where Nicole had been sitting. When she didn’t see her and instead heard a groan she gasped and hurried around the desk to where Nicole was on the ground. She knelt in front of her and put a hand on her shoulder gently “Oh my god are you alright? I am so sorry.”

 

“It’s fine” Nicole whispered softly and tried to get to her feet while politely brushing off Waverly’s help. She grunted as a pain shot through her tailbone but she managed to climb to standing without too much effort. That’s when she saw Wynonna turning around cautiously to look in their direction which caused her to blush softly “Look, Wynonna, we-”

 

Wynonna put her hand up to stop Nicole from talking. She then looked at her little sister and perked an eyebrow at her before motioning with her hand over her shoulder “Can you take door duty with Dolls for a bit? He’s being extra annoying tonight and I don’t want to have to-” She lifted Peacemaker to her chin and mocked the action of pulling the trigger.

 

“Uh…” Waverly was a little taken aback by how randomly casual Wynonna had just become. She eyed her carefully then looked at Nicole quickly before her eyes returned to her sister. Finally she just shrugged and gave a nod “Sure.” She looked at Nicole and gave her an apologetic smile then motioned toward the general area of where the front door to the police station was located “I will just take my leave I guess.” She walked slowly, her eyes shifting from Nicole to her sister and back again until she finally slipped around the corner and out of the room.

 

Nicole let out a breath she hadn’t realized she had been holding. She then offered Wynonna as casual of a smile as she could before moving to fetch her chair that had rolled away from her. She slid it back toward her desk then sat down, carefully since her ass was sore, before going back to the paperwork she had been doing before Waverly had come in. Besides if she avoided eye contact she could pretend that this wasn’t the most awkward moment of her life.

 

Wynonna Earp was never one to beat around the bush. She was also fiercely protective of the ones she loved and she didn’t love anyone in the entire world more than she loved Waverly. So instead of standing there in awkward silence or pretending she had not just walked in on something she had never expected to walk in on she walked right over to Nicole’s desk and stood there. She waited for the woman to look up and when that moment never came she put her hands on her hips and cleared her throat really loudly.

 

Nicole let out a sigh to herself and slowly looked up. She bit her lip at the look on Wynonna’s face. She didn’t know the girl at all but she could tell she was upset. So she tried to pretend nothing weird was going on and put a forced smile on her face “May I help you?”

 

“Look I don’t know who you are, where you came from, or why you are here. What I do know is Waverly is the literal best person in the entire world and I somehow got lucky enough to be related to her. What that means to me is something I will never be able to put into words. So what that means for you is I will go to my grave protecting her from whatever intends to do her harm and I am not just talking in a scary demon type way. So whatever you think you’re plans with her are you better forget them.” There wasn’t a single change in inflection in Wynonna’s voice. There was no mistaking she was dead serious about her words.

 

Nicole let out another heavy sigh. Her head shook and she looked Wynonna straight in the eyes to show her that she was just as serious as she spoke “My only plans for her are the same as yours, Wynonna. Go to my grave to protect her if I have to.”

 

“Oh please” Wynonna puffed out a sound of disbelief and rolled her eyes “You’ve known her for like five minutes. You can’t seriously be sitting here telling me you’re so in love with her that you would die for her. This isn’t a t.v. show and, quite frankly, you sound pretty desperate right now.”

 

Nicole rolled her eyes now too. She could tell that her and Wynonna were going to constantly be bumping heads. Their personalities were just too different. Or perhaps too similar. “I am not in love with her. And, not that it’s any of your business, I’ve known her for a lot longer than five minutes.”

 

“You could have fooled me” Wynonna gestured from the door where she had entered the room and then to the desk where she had seen Waverly nearly kissing Nicole just moments earlier. She shrugged and dropped her hand out of the air causing it to land against her own leg with a slap. “Let’s skip past the shock that my sister has never showed interest in kissing a girl up until this very moment because there are far more important things to worry about and go right to the fact that I just walked in on that said kiss. You two looked pretty lovey dovey to me.”

 

“Oh my god” Nicole rolled her eyes again. She stood from her desk with a file in her hands and walked away from Wynonna toward the shelf that held all the files. She took a moment to find where the file belonged and after stuffing it not so gently into its place she turned back around to face Wynonna with a fierce determination in her eyes. She was not going to let Wynonna bully her around in a situation she had no business poking around in in the first place. “Listen, Wynonna, I get that you’re all badass sister with the big scary gun that kills demons and that gives you some sort of power trip but there are bigger things going on that you are completely unaware of so maybe you should stick to the whiskey and the demons and let everyone else do their thing.”

 

“Firstly” Wynonna had never backed down from an argument and she wasn’t about to start now “Waverly is my business. In case you’ve forgotten she is my sister which makes her family and there is nothing more important to me than family. I mean, hello…” She waved Peacemaker around and scoffed at it as if that should have been obvious. She was only in Purgatory to break the family curse and make sure her sister could have a normal life. “And secondly you are a complete stranger to us, to our entire town, so you’re the one who should butt out and let everyone else do their thing.”

 

“Wynonna I get that you care about these people in this town-”

 

“Watch your mouth” Wynonna scowled at Nicole with a shake of her head. “I don’t give two farts about these hillbilly inbreds.”

 

Nicole rolled her eyes and shook her head as if shaking away the completely unnecessary sarcasm “But I do too. The only reason I am here is to protect these people. More specifically I am here to keep Waverly safe.”

 

“You! Don’t! Even! Know! Her!” Wynonna shouted each word loudly out of frustration. “It’s fucking creepy the way you’re so obsessed with her. Have you been like stalking her for years and now you’re here to finally collect your prize and wear her skin?”

 

“No, I am not a stalker” Nicole barked out. Then she realized she was yelling at the girl like some uncivilized beast and she drew in a deep breath to calm herself down. She was not an irrational person and she did not use yelling as a form of productive communication. So after a few deep breaths Nicole looked back at Wynonna and sighed “Even if I could tell you there is no way you’d believe me.”

 

“Sounds like an excuse a creep who got caught would use” Wynonna scoffed and rolled her eyes again.

 

“I am not a creep!” Nicole yelled again. She was growing more and more frustrated and impatient with Wynonna. For some reason she got under her skin like no one else she had ever met. It was infuriating. “How about you cut the damn cord and let Waverly be her own person!”

 

“What did you just say to me?” Wynonna’s entire body straightened up as anger surged through her. Her eyes narrowed so much it looked as though she was willing lasers to shoot out of them and into Nicole. “I swear to god that if you go near Waverly again I will destroy you.”

 

“She is not your property!” Nicole growled and adjusted her own body to mimic Wynonna’s aggressive stance.

 

“She is MY sister” Wynonna yelled ferociously “And that gives me a Hell of a lot more claim on her than you’ll ever have!”

 

“I am no one’s to claim!” Waverly interrupted now with a shout of her own from the doorway. She had heard the shouting from the front door of the station and came to see what they were fighting about. She looked appalled at what she had just walked in on. Her head shook and her body slumped a bit to show her disappointment “I am actually really disgusted with both of you.”

 

“No, Waverly, I was saying you aren’t something to be claimed. I swear-”

 

“This is none of your business” Wynonna cut off Nicole’s rambles and made her way over to her sister quickly. She frowned slightly and spoke very gently to Waverly “Hey babygirl I didn’t mean that you were property I was just trying to protect you.”

 

“Enough” Waverly lifted her hand toward her sister to stop her from speaking. The hurt she felt was visible in her eyes as she looked back and forth between Wynonna and Nicole. She shook her head and let out a trembled sigh before focusing on her sister now “You’re trying to protect me?”

 

“Of course” Wynonna nodded slightly. There was a genuine sense of sorrow on her face.

 

Waverly shrugged and motioned toward where Nicole stood across the room “So is she, Wynonna.”

 

Wynonna blinked and looked a little confused at her sister’s words. She looked from Waverly to Nicole then back again. She let out a stifled breath of a laugh and shrugged slightly “What are you talking about? Why are you defending her? You barely know her.”

 

“You’re right” Waverly said with a nod as her eyes shifted from Nicole to Wynonna. She motioned to the other woman without breaking her eye contact with her sister “I haven’t known her very long at all but I can stand here and look you dead in the eyes and tell you with every ounce of certainty that she is here to protect me. Besides-” She finally broke the eye contact and looked to Nicole. She smiled very gently at the girl as her gaze now settled on Nicole’s “She’s known me since the moment I was born. I trust her with my life.”

 

Nicole bit her lip to fight the smile that was appearing on her mouth. She blinked and looked down to her feet for a moment simply to break the eye contact she was sharing with Waverly. Even if they weren’t touching she could still feel the intense energy that they shared whenever they were near one another. It never ceased to fade.

 

“What do you mean she’s known you since the moment you were born?” Wynonna looked more than confused now as she shifted her eyes back and forth between the two other women in the room. She finally came to focus on her sister and gave her head a little shake “Waverly, what is going on here?”

 

“We fight demons” Waverly slowly pulled her eyes from Nicole and brought her gaze back to her sister. Her eyes held a firm seriousness behind them as they came to settle on Wynonna and she nodded before speaking “We have seen some crazy shit while fighting all of these demons, shit that is impossible to believe had we not experienced it first hand, and we take it all at face value because what else can we do, right?”

 

Wynonna gave a nod but still looked completely lost in finding a point in all of Waverly’s rambling.

 

“We see demons almost every day” Waverly continued. Her face softened a little and she turned to look back at Nicole with a nod “So how in the world can we not realize that angels exist too?”

 

“Angels?” Wynonna’s eyelids fluttered and her head shook as she tried to absorb and understand what her sister was getting at.

 

Nicole smiled almost shyly now as her eyes came back to meet Waverly’s gaze when she looked back at her. She couldn’t believe that Waverly was about to let her sister in on their secret. It was a bold move, it proved that Waverly wanted the girls to trust one another, but Nicole wasn’t sure Wynonna would believe it.

 

Waverly caught Nicole’s eyes and her smile grew slightly. She let her eyes linger on the woman for a moment before slowly looking back to her sister. She lifted a hand and gestured toward where Nicole was standing before speaking seriously to her sister “She’s an angel, Wynonna. My guardian angel, actually. She is here to protect me. So can you please put your trust issues on the back burner for a moment and see that you two want the same thing?”

 

Wynonna blinked just once. She looked carefully from her sister to Nicole and back again. Her eyes narrowed as she assessed the situation and after a moment a slow smile started to creep onto her lips. She let out a breath of a laugh and started to nod “Alright, you got me. You two are good” She pointed now to each of them then slowly gave a few claps. “I’ve got to hand it to you guys. You pulled a fast one on me. That is hard to do.”

 

“Wynonna” Waverly groaned out in frustration and shook her head. “I am not joking! She is really my guardian angel and I-” She was cut off by the sudden appearance of the huge troll-like creature that they had brought into the station earlier in the day. He flung his arm and swatted Waverly out of his way causing her to fly across the room and slam into a wall.

 

When this happened, Nicole flew backwards too. She hit the wall nearest her with a sickening thud. She was unconscious before she hit the ground.

 

“Holy shit!” Wynonna leaped back and whipped Peacemaker out of its holster. She pointed the gun at the creature and yelled “Sorry Dolls! This one has to go!”

 

“Wynonna wait!” Waverly, who should have been injured by the creature’s blow, was on her feet again. She rushed around to where Nicole stood and put herself between Nicole and the creature as an act of protection over the downed woman. She looked at the creature and then her sister and shook her head “You can’t kill this one with Peacemaker. It has to be fire. I researched it and-”

 

Suddenly a fireball came from behind the creature. The huge being immediately lit up and started to howl in agony as it flailed around while it’s flesh burned. 

 

Wynonna jumped out of the way. Waverly hurried over to the fire extinguisher on the wall. Dolls, the source of the fire stood by watching the creature burn. Everyone just stood there watching until the monster was reduced to a pile of mushy burning ooze. Waverly then used the extinguisher to put out a few small fires that had started when the creature had touched desks and files. She then turned the extinguisher on the pile of burnt monster and covered it with the white foam until the flames disappeared.

 

“Holy shit” Wynonna repeated with wide eyes as she surveyed the madness that had just unfolded. She slowly holstered Peacemaker again then looked between Dolls and Waverly. She settled on Dolls and pointed at him “How the Hell did you do that?”

 

“Long story” Dolls said with a nod as he stepped over the dead monster toward Wynonna “Everyone alright?”

 

“Yeah I’m fine” Wynonna looked at her sister who had moved now to kneel near Nicole and her brow creased “Wait when did she get hit?”

 

“When I did” Waverly grumbled as she slowly worked to turn Nicole over. She leaned over the girl to check her breathing and was relieved to see her chest rising and falling with each breath she took. She let out a sigh and slowly stroked her hand over Nicole’s cheek “I am so sorry. You didn’t deserve that.”

 

“What is going on?” Wynonna moved over to where her sister knelt near Nicole and gave a shrug “What do you mean she got hit when you did?”

 

“She takes all of my pain” Waverly looked up at her sister. She stood up now to face Wynonna and held both of her hands out to her sides then looked over herself with a shake of her head “Did you not see me get flung across the room by that thing? I smashed a bookcase. I should hurt, shouldn’t I?”

 

“Yeah” Wynonna blinked and nodded once in agreement. Then her brow creased and her face twisted with confusion “Yeah. How the Hell are you standing?”

 

Waverly motioned down to Nicole then looked at her sister with a bit of sadness on her face “She absorbs it all. I barely felt a thing because of her. She’s been doing it my entire life, before we even met, and now that she’s here it’s been even worse for her.”

 

Wynonna blinked. She looked at Nicole, then to Waverly, then back to Nicole. Her jaw dropped open a little and she just stared in confusion. None of it made any sense. This couldn’t actually be happening, right?

 

Nicole groaned and started to come too. Waverly quickly knelt next to her and the first thing she saw when she opened her eyes was Waverly’s concerned face. She frowned and reached out her hand to touch at Waverly’s soft cheek “Hey, cheer up. I’m good.”

 

Waverly moved her hand into Nicole’s gentle touch. The sparks against her skin were a welcome feeling. Her heart was racing. She had been worried Nicole had been seriously hurt. She let out a sigh and shook her head as her fingers reached out to push some of Nicole’s loose hairs from her braid behind her ear “I’ve decided I am going to do whatever it takes not to get hurt because I do not like this whole…” She motioned to the rubble that surrounded Nicole’s crumpled body and shrugged. “It’s terrifying seeing you like this.”

 

“I’m fine” Nicole grunted and moved to sit up. Her entire body ached but it wasn’t as bad as it could have been. Nothing was broken. Once she was sitting upright she brushed herself off a bit  then looked up at Wynonna who was staring at her in awe. She bit her lip and gave a timid shrug as she asked “Do you believe me now?”

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 


	9. You keep tearing me apart

The following week found Nicole falling into a pretty steady routine. She would work during the day as a cop for the town of Purgatory and at night she helped the Earp sisters fight demons. Due to her special circumstances, being an angel and knowing about the Earp Curse, she was quickly brought into the Black Badge Division as well. That meant the nights she did not spend out hunting demons were spent at the police station standing watch in case whatever creature they had captured for BBD to study decided to try and escape.

 

Though she would never complain about it there was no mistaking all of it was taking its toll on Nicole. She slept very little. She worried all the time. She was constantly getting new injuries both her own and Waverly’s. It was starting to show. She looked worn down. She looked like she needed a vacation. To top it all off her super fast healing ability seemed to be slowing down at an alarming pace.

 

“Haught, my office” Nedley all but demanded as he walked by her desk on the way to his office without even looking at her. He headed straight over to his desk and took a seat while he waited for Nicole to follow him. When she did in fact do so he motioned for her to close the door behind her then have a seat.

 

“Did I do something wrong?” Nicole looked worried as she sat in the chair opposite Nedley. The stern look on his face definitely caused her to be concerned about why he had called her into his office.

 

“I am not going to beat around the bush, Haught” Nedley said gruffly as soon as she was in her seat. “You look like Hell. Are you sleeping?”

 

“Sometimes” Nicole said with a shrug. “Usually when I’m here at night on watch.” She bit her lip and looked nervously down to her hands at her confession. She knew she shouldn’t sleep on the job but sometimes it was so quiet she couldn’t help it.

 

Nedley shook his head a bit at that. His stern look softened a little and turned to concern as he looked across his desk at her “Nicole you can’t run yourself into the ground. Waverly needs you at full strength. When is the last time you took a day off and saw the sun?”

 

Nicole looked up at Nedley and gave a sad shrug. It had only been about a week since she had really dove into the thick of everything going on in Purgatory but it felt like longer. Much longer. She sighed softly at that “There is just so much to do.”

 

“Listen” Nedley spoke softly now. He was not lecturing her he was trying to show he cared about her well being now. “You need to take some time to recharge. Go on a hike or take a picnic to the park. Get outside and away from all of this. We can survive without you for a day.”

 

Nicole perked an eyebrow at that. It sounded like her boss was giving her a day off of work. She gave him the smallest smile and nodded once “That does sound nice.”

 

“Trust me” Nedley said with a little bit of a nod and smile now as he stood from his desk. He motioned for her to do the same then moved to open his door for her. “You’ll thank me tomorrow.”

 

“I’ll thank you now, too” Nicole said with a nod as she stepped passed him on his way out. She moved to her desk and gathered a few things then hurried out of the building to enjoy the day off she had just been given. The day was still young and the air was crisp. The sun was shining brightly. As soon as she stepped outside she drew in a deep breath, closed her eyes, and let the sun hit her face. Her entire body swelled with a sensation of relief. She had not realized how badly she had needed some time off. It was only one day but it would do wonders for her she was sure of it.

 

After taking a moment to breathe in the fresh new day she opened her eyes. The first thing that came into focus was Shorty’s and that made her smile. She wondered what Waverly was up to. So without hesitation at all she moved toward the saloon in hopes she would find the girl hanging out there.

 

After finding out that Waverly was not at Shorty’s, unfortunately, she thanked Gus for her help then decided to go home and change. She would freshen up a bit, since she apparently looked like Hell, then head over to the Homestead to find Waverly. She made the short walk to her apartment building and as she was reaching the landing of the steps on the third floor she heard a sound near where her door was just around the corner. She paused to listen and when it sounded like someone was messing with her doorknob she quickly drew her gun and stepped around the corner with it aimed and ready “Freeze!”

 

There was a loud scream of surprise from the culprit. Hands shot in the air as the person stood upright and froze on the spot. They didn’t even turn around to face Nicole. The person just stood there “What the Hell are you doing home so early?”

 

“Wynonna?” Nicole breathed out the breath she had drawn in when she had come around the corner. She dropped her gun and holstered it again before moving over to the girl. “What in the world…” She paused as she saw a lock picking set near Wynonna’s feet in front of her door. She perked an eyebrow and let out a huffed breath “Are you serious right now?”

 

“I have a good explanation” Wynonna dropped her hands from where she had held them in the air now that she wasn’t going to die. She turned around and when she saw Nicole looking at her without a single hint of amusement on her lips she gave a wide, guilty smile “I have no explanation. I just wanted to snoop around your apartment to make sure you are who you say you are.”

 

“Oh my god” Nicole rolled her eyes and huffed in frustration. She moved to her door, not so politely nudging Wynonna out of her way, and unlocked it quickly. She then pushed the door open widely and motioned dramatically for Wynonna to go ahead inside. “I have nothing to hide. Quite frankly I can’t believe you still don’t believe me after what you’ve seen this week.”

 

“I do” Wynonna lifted her hand as if to make a point. She then paused and shook her head as she stepped inside the apartment. Her eyes immediately moved to scan around the still fairly bare dwelling and after a moment she let out a laugh “Damn girl where the Hell do you sleep?”

 

“I don’t” Nicole mumbled softly. As if on cue her body sent a yawn through her lips. She shrugged it off as it passed then motioned to Wynonna again “I’m really sorry Wynonna but I don’t have anything more I can say or do to prove to you that I am not here to hurt Waverly. How hard is it for you to believe that guardian angels do exist?”

 

“It’s not that” Wynonna shook her head and slowly moved into the kitchen area of the apartment. She turned to the nearest counter and pulled herself up so she was sitting on top of it. She had a more serious look on her face now as she looked at Nicole. She shrugged a little as she spoke “What I’ve seen since you’ve started helping with the demons around here is more than enough to convince me that you are more than just a human. As much as it pains me to admit I am glad you are here. Knowing that Waverly has two people willing to die for her makes this whole demon hunting thing a little easier on me.”

 

Nicole was surprised by how genuine Wynonna sounded. It was the first time she had really said anything nice to her since they had met. She understood her concerns. Family was important. Nicole wished every day she could have protected her parents. She shook the thought away and sighed as she asked softly “Then what did you come here looking for?”

 

Wynonna took a moment to look at Nicole. She had always thought she was a terrible judge of character but she could usually tell if someone was scum and nothing about Nicole told her that she was scum. Besides, Waverly was a great judge of character and she did nothing but talk highly of Nicole. That didn’t mean her innate desire to keep Waverly from harm was any less rampant. Finally she sighed and spoke with more seriousness in her tone than she might have ever held in her entire life “Are you in love with her?”

 

“Wh-what?” Nicole stammered. The surprise from the question was painted all over Nicole’s face. She blinked a few times as if trying to focus on the words that had just been spoken to her. Finally her head shook and she let out a laugh “What gives you that idea?”

 

“I see the way you two look at each other. The way you two share little glances and touches. Sometimes you two forget there are other people in the same room as you when you get together.” Wynonna shrugged and hopped down from the countertop now. She looked Nicole over again slowly before shrugging “I know you are here to protect her from physical harm but there is nothing in the world that can stop a broken heart and I swear to god if you break her heart you will feel more pain from me than you’ve felt in your entire life combined.”

 

“I’m not going to break her heart, Wynonna.” Nicole said softly. Her voice trembled as she spoke. Her heart was racing in her chest. Just the idea of hurting Waverly like that made her want to throw up. She was also realizing that Wynonna’s words to her had hit very close to home. Was she in love with Waverly? She hadn’t thought so before now. That thought was definitely racing through her mind now though.

 

Wynonna nodded once more. She had moved toward the still open apartment door and once she reached it she paused. Her eyes looked Nicole over once more and her stern gaze that had been fixed on her face softened a bit. “You look like Hell, Haught. Don’t you ever sleep?”

 

Nicole let out a soft but tired laugh. She shook her head and watched Wynonna walk out of her apartment now without another word. As soon as she was gone, Nicole’s smile faded. There was no way she was in love with Waverly. It was just their connection shared that made them act the way they did. It was unlike anything Nicole had ever experienced and she certainly couldn’t explain the intensity to anyone. But Waverly got it. They both just understood. She was a guardian angel and Waverly was her human. That’s as deep as it went. At least that’s what she would keep telling herself.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

_ “Where’s Nicole?” Waverly yelled at Wynonna before ducking an incoming rock that had been tossed at her head. _

 

_ “I have no idea! Babygirl, look out!” Wynonna pointed behind Waverly and drew Peacemaker up to take aim. _

 

_ Waverly screamed. _

 

Nicole hit her bedroom floor with a powerful thud. Her eyes shot open and she gripped at her stomach as she tried to draw in a deep breath. She wasn’t sure if it was the fall from the bed or what had happened in her dream that had knocked the wind out of her. All she knew was she couldn’t breathe and she was in pain. 

 

She laid crumbled on the floor for a few long minutes before the pain subsided enough for her to draw a full breath in. She groaned as oxygen filled her lungs. Her ribs ached. Her back ached. Her head throbbed. She felt like she had been hit by a bus. She had to find out where Waverly was and what had happened to her.

 

She scrambled to her feet as quickly as she could, still gripping her midsection with one arm because it was painful to move, and searched for some clothes. She cursed to herself for falling asleep. She must have sat down after her shower and dozed off. 

 

After finding some clothes and pulling them on sloppily she managed to find her gun and keys and stumble out of her apartment. She looked like someone who had been roughed up in a fight. Her clothes were disheveled and her face was starting to bruise. Each step she took brought pain that shot through one of her ankles. It had never been this painful before and she was starting to worry. Waverly must have sustained some sort of injury this time. There was no way whatever was causing this kind of pain to her didn’t at least leave a mark on Waverly.

 

She had just gotten to her truck and was unlocking it to make her way to the Earp Homestead when she heard a shout down the street. She whirled around because she recognized the voice. It was Wynonna.

 

“Gus! Come on Gus open up!” Wynonna was banging on the door of Shorty’s furiously with one hand. The other arm was very obviously supporting the weight of an unconscious Waverly.

 

Being in as much pain as Nicole was in she somehow managed a dead sprint down the road when she saw Wynonna and Waverly. She found strength from somewhere and each step was agonizing but she made it to the girls outside Shorty’s faster than she had ever made it anywhere in her life. She fell to her knees in pain right next to Waverly. She quickly started to check the girl over before looking at Wynonna “What happened?”

 

“Where the Hell have you been?” Wynonna growled then looked back at the door she was trying to beat open with her bare hands. “GUS!”

 

“I must have dozed off. I didn’t meant to” Nicole wanted to cry. Her body was throbbing from end to end in pain and Waverly was there dangling from Wynonna’s arm without a sign of life in her. She groaned as her hands lifted to cup at Waverly’s face “Waves, come on, wake up. I’m here. I got you.”

 

“Don’t touch her!” Wynonna yelled again and stepped away from Nicole. When she did so Nicole’s entire form came into the lights from one of the heavy lights that lined the street. That is when Wynonna saw the state that Nicole was in. She looked completely wrecked. She looked as if she had been mugged. Her body was bruised everywhere. “Dude what the Hell?”

 

“I don’t…” Nicole shook her head and drew in a sharp breath. Her ribs still stung each time she tried to inhale. She could feel the pain multiplying by the moment. She was starting to tremble. She could feel her body weakening. Her hand moved to take Waverly’s hand. She gave it a tight squeeze and that was the last thing she remembered before everything went black.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

Nicole blinked a few times to let her eyes adjust to the light in the room. It wasn’t bright but it was still light. She felt like she hadn’t opened her eyes in years. She groaned slightly and tried to focus on where she was.

 

“Hey” Waverly’s voice came in a whisper. Her hand reached out and she took hold of Nicole’s gently. “Don’t try to move.”

 

“Where am I?” Nicole mumbled as her hand squeezed Waverly’s as tightly as she could. She blinked again and this time the other woman’s face came into focus. This caused her to smile slightly.

 

“You’re safe” Waverly said with a soft smile. “You’re in my bed at the Homestead. Everyone else is downstairs. We have all been worried about you.”

 

“Me?” Nicole perked an eyebrow at that. She barely knew most of the people involved in their group of demon hunters so it surprised her to hear they had cared enough to be worried.

 

“You’ve been out for three days.”

 

“Three days!” Nicole shot up in bed. This caused pain to rip through her body. She immediately winced and wrapped an arm around her midsection again to help soothe the pain that radiated there. She drew in a few slow breaths then looked over to Waverly “I’ve been out for three days?”

 

Waverly nodded. She looked concerned. “Nedley said you should have recovered much faster than you did. He thinks you’re taking too much damage too frequently and that’s why you’re not healing as quickly as before.”

 

Nicole nodded. She remembered how concerned Nedley had been. She wished he would have told her that. She would have made sure to recover properly had she known her healing powers could be affected.

 

“But don’t worry” Waverly tried to sound cheerful as she reached for the water on the bedside table she had brought in for Nicole. She lifted the cup and offered it over to the girl “He says he thinks the three days of healing probably regenerated you fully.”

 

“Probably?” Nicole asked with a huff as she took the water from Waverly with a smile of thanks.

 

“He said he wasn’t really sure. Apparently a lot of what goes on with guardian angels is a mystery still” Waverly shrugged and let out a sigh. She watched Nicole carefully take a drink and frowned. She felt so bad the girl was in pain. It was all her fault. 

 

It was silent for a moment as both girls mulled over their own thoughts. Nicole thought about how Nedley should have warned her about her healing powers being finite and Waverly thought about how bad she felt that Nicole was hurt.

 

Finally there was a break in the silence as Waverly took the empty glass from Nicole when it was offered. “I’m going to start being more careful. I never really cared if I got hurt as long as I was helping to protect Wynonna and put down demons, you know? But now…” Waverly let out a sigh and looked at Nicole with guilt in her eyes “I care too much about you to watch you continue to get so hurt.”

 

“It’s fine” Nicole tried to wave it off and give a shake of her head. “Now that I know I have to recover a little more frequently I will be alright.” She looked at Waverly with a soft smile “It’s my job to protect you, Waves. You can’t change that even if you wanted to.”

 

“But I can be more careful” Waverly said firmly. “I know that I can’t just walk away, not until the curse is broken, but I can tread lightly. I can be smarter. I can fight smarter.”

 

Nicole wanted to argue but she could see the determination in Waverly’s eyes. If she was being honest she would like a bit of a break from the pain. The last round had definitely terrified her. She was pretty sure she couldn’t die unless she was like decapitated or something but she had been sure she was pretty close to feeling what death felt like three nights earlier.

 

Waverly could see Nicole thinking it all over. She knew Nicole was too polite to argue about it. She liked that about the girl. Everything about her was so gentle and sweet. She was tough and brave and one of the strongest people Waverly had ever met. But when it came down to the people she cared about Nicole was a complete softie. 

 

“Can I ask you something?” Nicole said after a few beats of silence between them.

 

Waverly nodded quickly and reached for Nicole’s hand again “Only if you lay back. Please.”

 

Nicole let out a soft laugh but gladly gave into the request. She eased herself back onto the bed and once she was relaxed let out a sigh. That did feel a lot better.  Her head turned and she looked at Waverly a little more seriously before she posed her question “What happened that night? I saw you and you were unconscious. Did you feel pain too?”

 

Waverly blinked a few times at the question. It had not been what she had been expecting. But it was a fair thing to ask. She nodded once and after taking a moment to choose her words she answered “Yeah, I did. But it wasn’t a lot. It was like I got hit really hard, enough to take the wind out of me, and then I was asleep. I don’t really remember feeling much more than that. I was only out a few hours.”

 

Nicole gave a nod. It had scared her seeing Waverly unconscious that night. It was a fear she had never felt before. The thought of losing Waverly completely unnerved her. Thinking about it at the moment was making her mouth go dry. She cleared her throat and tried to push through it “Are you alright now?”

 

“Perfect” Waverly said with a nod. She offered Nicole a soft smile and gave the hand she held a squeeze “I honestly think you saved my life that night, Nicole.”

 

“It wouldn’t be the first time” Nicole said with a shake of her head. When she saw that Waverly looked surprised to hear that she just shrugged “I saw you get shot. I saw you die in Wynonna’s arms. I saw her crying as she held your dead body. Then I woke up to a hysterical roommate telling me she had just found me lying dead on the floor.”

 

This shocked Waverly. Nicole had never really divulged too much about what things she had experienced through her dreams.

 

“I have no doubts that I am the reason you are alive right now. My mother told me so. She said they brought me back that night because I needed to protect you still. But that I wouldn’t get another life so…” Nicole motioned gingerly to her entire being that laid in the bed and she shrugged “I don’t think you died again because I would not still be here.”

 

“You’ve died once already?” Waverly’s whisper trembled as it left her lips. 

 

“Kind of” Nicole said with a shrug. “My roommate said I was dead but I was fine like two minutes later” She could see Waverly was growing upset and this made her frown. She reached up with the hand that was not holding onto Waverly’s and touched gently at her cheek. She locked eyes with Waverly and whispered softly “But I’m just fine and I will continue to be just fine until the day you die of old age and I am no longer needed here to protect you.”

 

Waverly closed her eyes and turned her face into Nicole’s touch. When she did so the tears that had formed in her eyes spilled out and down her cheeks. Her body trembled. It was all just too much. This amazing and caring person had literally saved her life once before and continued to take every ounce of pain from her and did so without asking anything in return. What did she ever do to deserve this?

 

“Hey” Nicole whispered and sat up again with a grunt. She didn’t care that it caused her entire body to ache. All she cared about was that Waverly was crying. So she moved to wrap both arms around the girl now and pull her into her until she came to rest in her arms completely. She sat there with Waverly’s head on her shoulder, her hand running slowly along her back, trying to soothe the girl. “It’s what I was born to do. I wouldn’t change this for the world and at least now I get to fight by your side instead of only through my dreams.” She grinned at that and touched a kiss to the top of Waverly’s head “I am prepared to sacrifice my life. I would gladly do it twice.”

 

“I hope you never have to again” Waverly sniffled and shook her head. She pulled out of Nicole’s embrace just enough to look up at her. Her face was red and puffy from crying “I haven’t done anything to deserve someone like you.”

 

“You must have” Nicole said with a smile. She moved one hand to Waverly’s cheek and wiped away the tears that slid down her face. Even when she cried Waverly was the most beautiful girl in the entire world. “I feel lucky everyday that you are the one I was sent to protect.”

 

Waverly shook her head again. She closed her eyes because the way Nicole was looking at her was too much. Everything was just overwhelming her. She had never felt emotions as strongly as she felt them with Nicole. She wasn’t sure if it was because Nicole had been absorbing her emotions as well or if she had shut herself off from real emotions as a defense mechanism. Either way Nicole had barged in and kicked down whatever walls she had built up and now the emotions were flooding her relentlessly.

 

Nicole just pulled Waverly back against her chest and held her. She could only imagine what was racing through her mind. She was sure that if she was the reason someone she cared about was getting hurt she would be just as upset. So she would let Waverly cry. Everything the girl had been through over the years mixed with everything she had learned since Nicole had arrived in town was probably taking its toll on her. Nicole understood. So she would just wait and let Waverly feel whatever she was feeling while knowing she was completely safe in her arms.

 

The silence that filled the room was surprisingly comforting. Nicole was still in pain but it wasn’t too bad. Waverly cries were soft and they soon started to fade. After a bit of time it was just the two of them holding one another. With each passing minute of Waverly’s body pressed to Nicole’s she could feel herself growing stronger. She wasn’t sure if it was because of their connection or if it was something deeper. All she knew was she was starting to feel the pain fade and her strength returning.

 

Finally after longer than either of them really cared to know Waverly pulled back from the embrace again. She gave Nicole a shy smile and wiped a lingering tear from her eye “I’m sorry I don’t know what happened. Everything has just been building for a while and I guess it all boiled over when I saw how hurt you got.”

 

“I get it” Nicole said calmly. Her hand lifted and she gently ran some fingers back through Waverly’s messed hair. She smiled very gently and took a moment to soak in the girl’s features before she whispered again “You’re beautiful when you cry.”

 

“No one is beautiful when they cry” Waverly laughed it off shyly with a roll of her eyes.

 

“You are” Nicole said firmly. When Waverly’s eyes lifted to hers once more her stare was more serious as she spoke “You have no idea how beautiful you are to me.”

 

“I’m not” Waverly shook her head. “I’m a mess.”

 

“You’re perfect” Nicole said with a slight nod. “You know I would never lie to you.”

 

The way Nicole was looking at her so intensely caused Waverly to blush. She bit at her bottom lip shyly and fought the urge to look away from the woman who was making her feel more special than anyone ever had in her life. She licked her lips softly and spoke in barely a whisper “Do you remember the police station before Wynonna walked in?”

 

Nicole nodded quickly as the pace of her heart sped up. The moment when they had nearly kissed? She could never forget it. A soft smile flickered at the corner of her lips before she whispered “Can’t get it out of my head. Why?”

 

“Is that…” Waverly licked her lips again and swallowed a lump that had suddenly appeared in her throat. She drew in a deep breath to give her strength enough to push forward and ask what had been on her mind since that moment “Is that allowed? I mean you being my angel and all.”

 

Nicole let out a soft laugh because she knew what Waverly meant. It was a question she had ran through her own head a few times over since that moment. She gave a shrug slightly as she spoke “I honestly have no idea. I didn’t want to ask Nedley because I don’t really think that my personal life is any of his bus-”

 

Waverly cut off Nicole’s rambling explanation with the kiss they had been denied a few days before. As soon as their lips touched there was a sensation that ripped through Waverly that was unlike anything she had ever experienced before. It was hard to explain really. It was pleasure and joy and excitement. It was calm and beauty and peace. It was everything in this world beautiful enough to make you cry all rolled into one super charged flash that pulsed through the both of them at the exact same time.

 

It was too much to handle, the strength of what rushed through them when they kissed, and just a few seconds after it began the girls both pulled away. Nicole looked surprised. She had not expected Waverly to just up and kiss her and she most definitely had not expected to experience what she had just felt during the kiss. Her lips felt tingly and she let out a laugh as her chest heaved with heavy breaths “Wow.”

 

“Wow is an understatement” Waverly mumbled through a laugh. Her eyes were wide too as she looked at Nicole with amusement and joy on her features. “That was incredible. I have never felt anything like that in my entire life. In fact I’m pretty sure no human being has ever experienced what I just felt. That was….” She shook her head because she didn’t really have the words. Instead she let out a long breath of a sigh and laughed again “Wow.”

 

There was another moment of silence between the girls as they allowed their minds and bodies to recover from what they had just experienced. It had been intense. It had been overwhelming in the best way possible. It had been the type of moment where you need to take a little time to absorb it all so you didn’t ever forget it.

 

Then the moment was gone. There was a soft knock at the door that broke the moment, broke the silence, and they were pulled back into reality. Waverly gently moved out of Nicole’s arms and off the bed to make her way over to the door. She pulled it open and gave a little smile to her sister on the other side “Since when do you knock?”

 

“Since…” Wynonna glanced into the room and saw that Nicole was awake and sitting up. She smiled just barely, for just a second, and gave a shrug “I wasn’t sure if she was awake yet.”

 

“Hey, Wynonna” Nicole greeted her with a smile of her own as she lifted her hand to wave toward the door. “Come on in.”

 

Wynonna nodded at that then looked back to her sister. There was concern on her face when her eyes met Waverly’s. “We need to talk.”

 

“What’s going on?” Waverly frowned. She was instantly worried at the way Wynonna’s face was devoid of her usual slightly sarcastic smirk. Even in times of trouble Wynonna always seemed to be a split second away from cracking a joke. That was nowhere to be seen on her face at the moment and that was cause for great concern.

 

“I think we figured out what came after us the other night and it’s not good, Babygirl.” Wynonna let out a heavy sigh. She glanced between her sister and Nicole across the room on the bed. Her head gave a shake and her eyes slowly returned to Waverly “The only way to kill it is for someone to die.”

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	10. Consuming all the air inside my lungs

“So do we have a plan?” Nicole asked with a groan as she stepped gingerly off the bottom stair on her way into the kitchen at the Homestead.

 

“We are working on one. What are you doing out of bed?” Waverly asked with a frown as she hurried out of the kitchen and over to help Nicole make her way from the stairs.

 

“Are you kidding me? I can’t just sit up there waiting while you guys are gathered down here trying to figure out how to fight this thing” Nicole let Waverly help her to the kitchen table. She gave a little bit of a smile to the others around the table and slowly lowered herself into a chair.

 

“How are you feeling?” Dolls asked once Nicole sat.

 

“I am alive. Now let’s focus on the task at hand” Nicole motioned to all of the research that was spread out around the table and nodded.

 

The group in the Earp kitchen consisted of the Earp sisters and Dolls, the original members of the group, as well as Jeremy who had been assigned by Black Badge to study what Dolls and the girls brought into the station. Doc was there as well just like he always seemed to be since breaking the Earp curse was a personal interest for himself. It was obvious by the look on everyone’s face that what they had found in their research was not good news.

 

“The only concrete information we have found about this thing is that it sucks the life out of someone completely” Wynonna motioned to one of the papers she had been looking at then gave a shrug.

 

“There are hundreds of ancient tales of these life sucking monsters but nothing that proves they ever existed” Jeremy now spoke up. “Thus why we have no idea how to get rid of them.”

 

“So we don’t really have a plan” Wynonna cut in now with a little annoyance hanging in her voice. “Has anyone ever just tried killing it the old fashioned way?”

 

“No physical weapon, fire, or bomb seems to inflict pain upon this demon” Waverly read one of the journal passages of a man in the 1800’s who claimed to have tangled with these demons. She looked up at her sister once she was done reading and shrugged “They’ve tried.”

 

“Well none of them have had Peacemaker” Wynonna rolled her eyes then pulled out her trusty gun. She spun it around her finger a few times then aimed it at the wall. She mimicked the motion of pulling the trigger and firing a shot then looked at the group with a smirk “I mean this thing has never missed a shot when it really mattered so what makes you guys think this demon is any different?”

 

“I guess you’re right” Waverly said with a slight shrug “We haven’t tried a magical gun yet. It’s worth a shot.”

 

“So let’s just charge in there, let Peacemaker pierce it between the eyes, and save the world” Wynonna shrugged and looked at her gun fondly “Easy peasy lemon squeezey.”

 

“We don’t know anything about these things, how to find them, or even how many there are so no Wynonna more like difficult difficult lemon difficult” Nicole said with a kind of dumbfounded look on her face at how casual Wynonna was being.

 

“Well what do you suggest Miss High and Mighty?” Wynonna asked with a roll of her eyes.

 

Nicole shrugged slightly. She didn’t really have a plan yet but she knew they needed one. This was a serious situation and they couldn’t fight it blindly. She glanced around at the group in silent thought and after a moment she cleared her throat to speak “Let’s do a little more research to see if we can find any more information. Waves, do you think the library would have any really old books on this?”

 

“I am pretty sure I got them all but we can look again” Waverly offered with a nod.

 

“I think it’s smart to double check. You and Wynonna should check it out. We want any book that has any mention of anything old and evil.” Nicole gave Waverly a smile then turned to look at the other side of her where Jeremy sat “Jeremy, you and Dolls use your access of whatever archives BBD has. Make some calls. Let them know there is some serious shit going down here. See if we can get some support from them.”

 

“We can try” Dolls didn’t sound too convinced it would work. 

 

“Try” Nicole agreed with a nod. She then looked up at Doc. “You’ve been around for over hundred years. You have to have known someone who has seen something.”

 

Doc just shrugged a little and in his gruff voice he mumbled “Not that I recall. I will however get in touch with some of the older acquaintances of mine…” He let that linger because everyone knew he meant people that were supernaturally inclined “...see if they might be able to lend us some information on the subject.”

 

“Good” Nicole nodded once firmly. She liked that they now had the makings of a plan. She hated not being organized. She looked around the table then motioned with her hands in a shoo-ing motion “Alright, everyone move. We don’t have much time!”

 

“What are you going to do?” Waverly asked as she stood with the rest of the group then reached out to help Nicole to her feet.

 

“I’m a cop, Waves” Nicole said with a smile. “I have my own special set of skills.” That seemed to be enough and no one argued. They all parted ways to set out on their assigned tasks. One way or another Nicole knew they would figure out how to beat this. There had to be a way. She had a feeling the answer was there waiting just inside her.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

“Haught you are not supposed to be here” Nedley’s eyes were as wide as a deer’s in a headlight when he saw Nicole limp slowly into the police station.

 

“I need to talk to you” Nicole said softly. Each step she took was done slowly but she was determined to make her way to Nedley’s office.

 

“I have a telephone” Nedley replied with a huff as he moved over to help the woman toward his office. When he realized everyone was staring he rolled his eyes “There is plenty of police work you can all be doing. Get back to it.”

 

“Thanks” Nicole’s gratitude was seen on her face as she gave the man a smile. They made slow and careful work of getting to Nedley’s office but eventually they made it. She had barely even settled in the seat across from his desk and waited for him to close the door before she started talking “They think they know what did this.”

 

“You don’t beat around the bush do you?” Nedley had to admire her determination. He moved around to his chair and sat now slowly. He eyed Nicole carefully and shook his head “How are you feeling?”

 

“I’m still pretty sore but I feel stronger than I did this morning so I think I’m alright” Nicole tried to shrug it off because it wasn’t important. She would recover. She would be fine. There was a more pressing matter at hand. “So apparently there’s this-”

 

“Have you gone outside since waking up?” Nedley cut her off. There was concern on his face.

 

Nicole blinked at the way Nedley seemed fixated on her. She looked at him with a bit of confusion then shook his head “No not really. I mean I walked to the car then into the station just now. That’s about it. I’m not too worried about working on my tan right now.”

 

“Let’s go” Nedley stood from his desk now. He moved to open his office door then motioned with his hand toward Nicole “Come on, get up.”

 

“Can’t this wait?” Nicole was in complete shock that this man did not care about the demon that had done this to her.

 

“No it can not” He said with a shake of his head. He stared down at Nicole sternly, almost like a father waiting for his child to follow the instruction he had just given, and when she just sat there looking at him he barked out “Get up!”

 

This startled Nicole. She almost felt like a scolded child. She got up as quickly as she could and took the offered hand from Nedley without another word. She let the man help support her as they once more slowly moved through the station. 

 

Nedley took his time leading Nicole through a few hallways to the stairs that led to the roof. He helped her up each stair and once they pushed through the door at the top he smiled as the sunlight came down on them. He helped get her over to the ledge of the building to let her lean herself there before he shut the door behind them then moved back toward her.

 

Nicole watched him curiously. Now that they were outside in the sun Nedley had a smile on his face. She wondered why he had been so insistent. But she wouldn’t ask. Instead she tried again to get him to listen to her concerns “So this demon that did this to me the other night. We think-”

 

“Shhhh” Nedley held up a finger toward Nicole to indicate he wanted her to be quiet. He had his eyes closed and his face was turned up toward the sun. It was the middle of the day and the sun was at its highest point. His lips held a smile as he soaked in the feeling “Do you feel that?”

 

“Feel what?” Nicole shook her head and glanced up toward the sun. Sure she could feel the warmth from the midday sun but that wasn’t really what she was focused on at the moment.

 

“Haught” Nedley said softly and opened his eyes to look at her. He eyed her up and down slowly then pointed up toward the sun “Close your damn eyes and let it sink in. Take a few deep breaths in and let them out slowly. Just do it.”

 

Nicole had never seen Nedley act so weird before. It was frustrating the way he was not listening to her. She rolled her eyes and decided to just give into his wishes. Maybe if she took two minutes to do what he wanted he would finally focus and listen to what she had to say. So she closed her eyes, turned her face toward the sun, and pulled in a deep breath.

 

Now she had been out in the sun more times than she could count in her life. She had always enjoyed the warmth and calm that the sun offered her whenever she took the moment to soak it in before. At the moment, though, she was feeling something she had ever felt before. The warmth seemed stronger. It was almost as if it was seeping into her blood through her skin. With each deep inhale she felt herself being filled with a new energy. Like every time her lungs filled they drew in particles of sun that sparked her every last nerve ending to life. She felt as though she was literally breathing in physical life.

 

Her eyes opened slowly and she looked at Nedley in surprise. He was smiling at her and when their eyes met she couldn’t help but smile too. She let out a soft laugh then motioned to the sun “What just happened?”

 

“The sun is powerful, Nicole. It is where we draw our strength. There is a reason you heal faster during the day.” Nedley motioned to where she was leaning against the ledge of the building and nodded “How do you feel now?”

 

Nicole glanced down at herself as if she could see any sort of change that might have taken place. She stood more upright and twisted her torso back and forth carefully since that was where most of her pain came from when she moved. Though the pain was not gone it was certainly decreased. In fact she could turn back and forth without her breath hitching out of pain. It was now just a dull ache. Like a sore muscle. Her eyes went wide and she looked back up at Nedley “Are you serious? Why didn’t you tell me this before?”

 

“You didn’t need to know before. Your injuries weren’t substantial enough to cause a slowing in your regeneration. But what happened to you the other night was bad, Nicole” Nedley’s smile faded as he spoke of the condition that he had seen Nicole in on the night in question. He shook his head and let out a heavy sigh “You need to be careful from now on. I don’t know if you can take that much damage again and survive.”

 

“I plan on it” Nicole agreed with a nod. She knew that what had happened the other night had been too close for comfort. But she also knew she could not make any promises to him. It was her destiny, afterall, to protect Waverly. 

 

The thought of Waverly reminded her that she had come to ask Nedley about the demon that had done this to her. She shook off the other thoughts and changed the subject “Speaking of what happened the other night I think we know what it was.”

 

Nedley looked surprised. As far as he had heard they had all been at a loss in finding out what had done such damage.

 

Not wanting to hesitate Nicole pushed on when Nedley did not interrupt. She cleared her throat and spoke a little softer now even though they were on the roof. She was not sure how well their voices would carry “Apparently it’s an ancient demon that sucks the life right out of someone. It’s how they feed or something? We don’t really know much else. There are a few documented cases in history but most of the people were seen as crazy.” She shrugged, looking a little defeated, and looked up at Nedley as if looking for him to chime in with an answer “Apparently it can be killed by someone dying but we aren’t sure how it works. Like human sacrifice or what.”

 

Nedley looked worried. He was quiet for a few moments as he soaked in what Nicole had just said but there was no mistaking the worry on his face. He nodded once or twice and ran a hand over his beard as he thought it over. After just a few moments, though it felt like longer to Nicole, he cleared his throat to speak “I’m afraid I won’t be of much help. What you speak of has been rumored for centuries but, like you said, there isn’t much real information on them. I’ve done a little research, out of curiosity, and found a story about a guy sacrificing his wife but the translation was rough and it might have been his dog.”

 

Nicole frowned. This was very discouraging. She thought for sure Nedley would know a little more. But instead they were still at square one of the problem. A mysterious life sucking demon that no one really knew how to defeat. Hopefully Waverly or one of the others could stumble across something more. “Do you remember where you read about the sacrifice?”

 

“I’ll try to find it”  Nedley said with a nod. “And I will do anything I can to help in any other way. But remember what I said, Nicole” He motioned to her entire being standing there and nodded “Be careful. This is bigger than you protecting Waverly. It sounds like the fate of this town, maybe even the world, could be at stake.”

 

“Yeah no pressure” Nicole mumbled softly. She let out a sigh and the two of them turned to head back down the stairs that led from the roof. She would meet up with Waverly and Wynonna at the library and see if they uncovered anything new. She didn’t know why but she had a bad feeling growing quickly in her stomach that they were running out of time to figure this out.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

Nicole had taken her time on her walk the few blocks to the library in town. She was letting herself soak in more of the sun. She could not believe that she had never noticed the way the warmth and the light made her feel. The more she focused on the sun beaming down on her the more she felt herself swelling with power. It was like an energy sparking through her. It was crazy how in touch with the sun she now felt. 

 

The smile she held on her lips as she pulled the doors to the library open faded very quickly when her eyes settled on the scene she had walked into. It was dark in the library, almost like a cloud had moved in and was blocking all the windows, and the air felt thick. There was an eerie feeling of doom and despair hanging around.

 

Then there was a scream and Nicole felt her heart stop. She knew that scream. It was Waverly. Accompanying that scream was a sharp sudden pain in the side of Nicole’s head that made her freeze on the spot. She closed her eyes for a second and grabbed the spot where the pain had appeared suddenly. There was a few long seconds of sharp pounding and then it began to fade. Waverly must have been hurt and that was why she had screamed. Luckily for Nicole it seemed the power of the sun was still surging through her and the pain faded quickly.

 

Once the pain subsided to a tolerable low Nicole crouched and started to sneak around the corner carefully in the direction that she had heard the scream come from. She wasn’t sure what was going on but she knew if there was something in here with Waverly then she might be able to sneak up on it and take it out.

 

Nicole kept her ears sharp and her eyes constantly moving about. She walked slowly. She took care not to step on anything or kick anything that might make a noise and give away her presence. She kept her breathing slow and steady. This was not the time to panic this was the time for action. 

 

When she came around one of the longer bookshelves she found herself staring at the back of a creature she had never seen before. It was at least twice as tall as herself and skinnier than any human being possibly could be. It seemed to be floating and slightly transparent. More importantly it was hovering over Wynonna.

 

There had obviously been some sort of struggle in the area. There were tables overturned and chairs tossed about in all directions. As Nicole surveyed the scene she saw that Waverly was huddled and not moving near one of the overturned tables. She must have been tossed there in the scuffle. Nicole frowned at that. She would have to check on her as soon as she could but right now Wynonna was definitely in more immediate danger.

 

As her eyes skimmed around the room Nicole caught sight of something shiny out of the corner of her eye. Near one of the chairs just a few feet away from where she was crouched was the unmistakable shimmer from the shaft of Peacemaker. Now Nicole wasn’t sure how the gun worked but Wynonna seemed pretty confident it was good enough to take down this demon and that was good enough for Nicole.

 

She took a few more crouched steps toward the gun and once she was within reach she lunged for it. She scooped it up and in the same motion rolled over her left shoulder, landed on one knee, lifted the gun at the demon, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.

 

The barrel of the gun lit up a bright blue and the bullet exited with more power than Nicole had ever expected.

 

The demon wailed as the bullet was buried in the base of where the head and neck came together. The sound was sickening as the demon screamed in pain, thrashed around wildly, and finally tumbled to the ground a few feet away from where Wynonna had been trying to back away from it on the ground.

 

Peacemaker than heated up rapidly and burned Nicole where she held it. She winced and let the gun go. It landed on the ground with a thud with a bit of steam coming from it’s handle.

 

“Holy shit” Wynonna’s eyes were wide with surprise. She looked up at Nicole and let out a breath of a laugh “You really do have great timing and an incredible shot.”

 

“Right place, right time” Nicole brushed it off. “Are you okay?”

 

“Peachy” Wynonna lifted her hand with her fingers in the shape of the letters O.K., gave a wink, then started to get to her feet.

 

Nicole rushed over to Waverly as soon as she heard that Wynonna was alright. She knelt down next to the girl and gently put a hand on her back “Waves. I’m here. Are you okay?”

 

Waverly stirred and reached for her head. She rubbed at the spot where she had landed on her head and her eyes came open. She looked up and when she saw Nicole above her she smiled gently “I barely felt that. How are you? Is Wynonna okay?”

 

“Wynonna is peachy" Nicole laughed and touched the same spot on her own head that Waverly was rubbing on hers and shrugged “I’ve definitely been worse for wear. What happened?”

 

“It came out of nowhere” Waverly said with a shrug. She took Nicole’s hand that was offered to her and started to get to her feet. She brushed off slightly once she was standing and motioned to Wynonna who was leaned over the body of the fallen demon poking it with Peacemaker as if checking it for signs of life.

 

“How did you do that?” Wynonna turned away from the downed demon now and lifted Peacemaker to indicate what she was talking about. “This gun only works for the heir.”

 

“I don’t know” Nicole said honestly with a shrug of her shoulders. “I came in and saw all of this…” She motioned to the part of the library that was in shambles and gave a nod “...Then I just saw something shiny and it was the gun so I reacted.”

 

Wynonna eyed the gun suspiciously as if it had gone behind her back and betrayed her. When giving the gun a staredown did not produce any answers she shrugged and looked back at Nicole “And what was the deal with it turning blue? Usually when I’m downing a demon it’s color of choice is a nice fiery red.”

 

“Again I don’t know” Nicole motioned toward where Wynonna was standing “It’s your gun. I just used it because it was there and I didn’t have mine. Actually it was kind of strange. It was kind of like….” She looked at the gun and a soft smile came to her lips “...it was like it got my attention on purpose. Like it knew you needed help and I was the only one that could do it. Maybe that is why it worked for me?”

 

“Is that true buddy?” Wynonna turned the gun as she spoke to it. She looked at the gun as if waiting for it to answer her. When again there was no answer she shrugged and looked back at Nicole “Well whatever happened I just wanted to say…” She let out a heavy sigh and the smirk that always seemed to stay on her lips dropped. She had a more serious look on her face and shrugged just one shoulder “...you saved my ass. Thanks.”

 

“No problem” Nicole smiled almost shyly. The genuine look on Wynonna’s face really touched her. WIth how their relationship had started it was a real surprise to be given anything but sarcasm from Wynonna. It was nice.

 

Waverly smiled softly at the exchange. It was good to see her sister warming up to Nicole. She knew how cautious Wynonna was when it came to protecting her. She had gotten more than a few earfuls about how Wynonna did not trust Nicole so it was pretty unexpected to see her sister warming up to the girl now. It really touched her heart. It gave her hope that in the future once Nicole and herself figured out what was going on between them that Wynonna would at least slightly support it. Having the person she loved most in the world approving of whatever happens with Nicole was more important than either of them knew.

 

Suddenly Waverly’s smile faded and her eyes widened with fear. She stepped up closer to Nicole and pointed passed her toward where her sister stood. “Wynonna, watch out!”

 

Wynonna whirled around just in time to see the large thin demon rising behind her. She jumped back out of surprise and nearly tumbled over a chair. She managed to catch herself and stay on her feet but she had nowhere to go. She had already backed herself as far away as she had room to do so. She was pinned against a bookshelf as the demon closed in on her.

 

Her hands fumbled in her attempt to lift Peacemaker and take another shot at the demon but she couldn’t focus. It was as if the demon was casting some sort of cloud over her and all she could focus on was her own her doubts. Her hands were shaking too much and she ended up dropping Peacemaker to the ground with a thud.

 

She froze. Her eyes lifted and she found herself looking into the dark, hollow eyes of the demon. She felt herself consumed by nothingness. Darkness had seemed to move in all around her. As she stared unblinkingly at the cold holes of where eyes should be she felt herself giving up. This was it. She was going to die. She could feel it.

 

“Wynonna, no!” Waverly’s sob was gut wrenching. She knew she was watching her sister die.

 

Without a second of thought Nicole reacted. She took off in a quick sprint to close the distance between herself and where Wynonna was pinned by the demon. She could see the dark thin creature lowering itself over Wynonna, drawing itself closer, as if preparing to feed. Before it could completely consumed Wynonna though Nicole leapt in that direction and in doing so successfully pushed Wynonna out of the way of the demon’s attack.

 

Nicole immediately felt cold, empty, and weak. Everything went dark. It felt as though she was in a vortex with wind whipping around her and tearing apart the tiniest details of her being. She felt like the skin was being ripped from off her bones. All of the air was sucked from her lungs in one violent snap. Then she felt herself go completely limp.

 

It was quiet for an amount of time that didn’t really matter because time no longer existed. There was nothingness. That was all Nicole was aware of in the moment. It wasn’t black or white. There was no noise. No light. There was just nothing and Nicole was just there.

 

She suddenly heard her name. She her Waverly crying. She heard Wynonna’s voice too. That was the only thing that existed within the nothingness. 

 

“She’s dead!” Waverly cried loudly over Nicole’s body laying on the ground. She couldn’t see anything but tears as she leaned over and blew a long breath into Nicole’s lifeless body.

 

“Calm down babygirl. Just calm down” Wynonna’s own voice was shaking as she fumbled with her phone. She looked to her sister and back to her phone and shook her head “I’m calling for help okay? It’s gonna be okay. Nicole is gonna pull through.” She tried to sound convincing but it fell flat.

 

“Come on, Nicole” Waverly sobbed as her hands moved now to Nicole’s chest. She started to do compressions which grew more and more firm as determination filled Waverly with each passing second “Breathe. You do not get to do this to me. Not now. Not when I need you most.”

 

“Shit” Wynonna felt herself starting to get overwhelmed as she held the phone to her face and waited for an answer. She could not believe that Nicole had just saved her life. She felt a tear slide down her cheek and she drew in a deep breath. She turned away from Nicole and closed her eyes “You better pull through, damn it. If you leave her alone and I will kill you.”

 

“Please” Waverly started to cry harder. Her compressions ceased and she leaned over to breathe into Nicole again. As her breath filled Nicole’s lungs then exited again without any hint that it had helped at all, Waverly felt herself losing control. She broke down into heavy sobbing, laying herself on Nicole’s chest, and clinging to her tightly “Please don’t go. I love you.”

 

That was the last thing that Nicole heard from within the nothingness before a bright, warm light filled the space. Nicole turned to face the light and suddenly she felt safe. She didn’t hesitate now as she moved into the light. She knew that it was her time. She had fulfilled her destiny. In that moment she had no other feelings or thoughts. All she felt was complete.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	11. And even though you got good intentions

Peace filled Nicole as she walked through the light. It was warm and welcoming and nothing inside her doubted that it was exactly where she needed to be. There wasn’t an ounce of fear coursing through her. She was at peace. So she walked right into it as if she were walking into the warm embrace of a loved one.

 

Then the light was gone and instead of being in a place that had no distinction of a physical location she was instead standing in what looked like a room. There were walls and a floor and a ceiling. She looked around a little bit as she wondered if there was a door she should be looking for to go through next.

 

Before she could really put too much thought into it though she heard her name from a familiar voice. The same voice that had come to her and told her that she had to use her connection with Waverly in order to save humanity.

 

Nicole whirled around toward the voice with an excited smile coming to her lips “Mom?”

 

The woman gave a happy smile and nodded at her daughter. Her arms lifted toward Nicole in an unspoken beckoning for her daughter to come to her “My darling.”

 

Nicole moved without hesitation. She wrapped her arms around her mother’s waist as soon as she was within reach. She let herself be completely consumed by her mother’s arms. She melted into the feeling of being held by her mother again. It had been far too long. She drew in a deep breath and let it out happily as her head came to rest on her mother’s shoulder “Is it really you?”

 

“It is really me” Her mother spoke softly with a light laugh in her tone. She gave her daughter a tight hug but made no other movements to break the embrace they were wrapped in. “I have missed you.”

 

“I’ve missed you too” Nicole repeated the sentiment softly. She felt herself starting to grow emotional and she had to draw in a slow breath to calm herself down. When she drew in the breath her nose was filled with the scent of her mother and she gave a little tremble. It really was her this time. 

 

The two of them stood in their loving embrace for a long time. Not that time actually existed. When they finally broke from the embrace Nicole’s mother reached up and cupped her daughter’s face in her hands gently. She pulled her in just close enough to touch a kiss to her forehead. She then pulled her face back and gave her a loving smile “You are so beautiful. I am so happy to see you.”

 

“I can’t believe it is really you” Nicole whispered as her eyes darted around to take in the vision of her mother standing before her. She had not gotten to say goodbye to her parents the night they had died. This was a moment she had thought about more times than she could ever begin to count. She had dreamed of having one more moment with both her mother and her father.

 

Then something dawned on her. She frowned slightly and looked around now “Where is dad?”

 

Her mother’s smile faltered just slightly. Her hands dropped from where they had been cupping Nicole’s face and she gave a single nod “We have some things to discuss.”

 

Nicole perked an eyebrow at that. She was surprised to see the concern on her mother’s face at the mention of her father. She blinked a few times and shook her head “Did he not make it to Heaven?” Nicole looked around them again then back to her mother quickly “This is Heaven, right?”

 

Her mother could see her daughter starting to panic a bit. She gave her a soft smile and reached down to take her hand. She gave the hand a gentle squeeze and laughed softly “Not exactly. The afterlife is not exactly how it is portrayed in the media. It is actually kind of a lot to explain and I don’t really have time.”

 

“How do you not have time?” Nicole huffed out in disbelief. She glanced around again and shrugged “We’re dead, mom. We have no place to be and a literal eternity to be there.”

 

“You have limited time. Your human body is dying” Her mother spoke seriously now with a growing sense of urgency in her voice.

 

“My human body is dying? I thought I was already dead?” Nicole motioned around where they stood and gave a shrug as if that was obvious considering their location.

 

“Like I said there is a lot to explain and usually I would have plenty of time to tell you everything but you have a decision to make first” Her mother motioned around where they stood then looked back at her daughter “You can choose to stay here for eternity. You can be with myself and your father again. You can enjoy the peace and serenity that your soul has earned by fulfilling your duty as guardian.”

 

Nicole perked an eyebrow slightly. She did not know that death came with options. She gave her head a slow shake and motioned for her mother to keep going “Or?”

 

“Or…” Her mother repeated the inquiry with a nod. She drew in a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. She sounded distraught. Almost like she did not want to offer the other option to her daughter. “Because of your selfless act of love in saving all of humanity from the Vita Rapientem demon I have been given the power to grant you stay on Earth to be with the one you love. To spend the rest of your days with your soulmate.”

 

Nicole’s eyes fluttered in quick blinks of shock. Her mouth dropped open. She was stunned to say the very least. Her mind was racing with a million questions. She was sure that if she had a heartbeat any longer that it would be racing.

 

Finally she managed to put together a few words “I...I can go back?”

 

Her mother gave her a nod. Her lips twitched into a slight smile but it faded quickly. “There are conditions for each choice. If you choose to stay here now with myself and your father you will be brought forth to lead the guardian council. You will oversee all new guardians. You will assign them. You will make sure every extraordinary human that needs their protection is taken care of so they can fulfill their reason for being on Earth.”

 

That seemed like a lot. It was a lot, actually. Nicole had so many more questions than she had when she had first seen her mother. She was sure that all of the questions would be answered and explained to her if this was the choice she made. She knew one thing through all of the uncertainty, though. She did like the sound of it. She liked knowing that she would be in charge of helping so many people. That was her greatest passion in life, and apparently, death.

 

She shook the thought away after a moment and looked back to her mom with a little bit of a shrug “Can’t I just do that if I go back?”

 

Her mother gave a shake of her head. She sighed out softly and gave her daughter’s hand that she still held a soft squeeze “If you go back you will be human, Nicole. You will no longer have your guardian abilities. You will be vulnerable to all the dangers of Earth. You will live out the rest of your life until you die. Upon your death all of your knowledge of your time as a guardian will vanish and your soul will be just like any other.”

 

Nicole frowned a little. She didn’t like the idea of not getting to help anyone else after she died. She liked thinking that her life did not stop after she was dead. She liked the thought of being able to touch so many lives for all of eternity. It was all she had ever wanted to do since the day she was born.

 

“My darling” Her mother spoke now and interrupted Nicole’s train of thought. When she had her attention again she gave a serious nod “Your human body is dying. You must choose quickly.”

 

Nicole blinked a few times quickly. She shook her head and drew in a deep breath. She opened her mouth to speak but didn’t know what to say. Her eyebrows creased together in a frown and she let out a distressed sigh “What should I do?”

 

“I can’t make that decision for you” Her mother said with a firm shake of her head. “You need to look deep down inside yourself to find the answer. It is inside you, Nicole. All the answers have always been inside you.” She gave her daughter’s hand one more squeeze and offered her a soft smile “Close your eyes. Take a breath. Listen to your heart.”

 

“I don’t have a heartbeat any more” Nicole said with a little laugh. Then she shook it off and her face was serious again. She looked at her mom for a moment then drew in a breath and closed her eyes. 

 

Silence surrounded her. She couldn’t hear anything. It should be strange that she had no heartbeat and no blood rushing through her body but it wasn’t. She was calm. She felt like she was surrounded by peace. She slowly let herself breathe out. It took just a single moment, the time it would take for a blink of an eye to happen, and Nicole suddenly knew what she wanted to do.

 

She opened her eyes and saw her mother smiling at her. Nicole couldn’t help but smile too. She gave a single nod and her smile grew slightly “Okay I know what I’m going to do.”

 

Her mother gave a single nod as well. She didn’t need to hear Nicole’s decision. She knew without a word being exchanged between them what her daughter would do. So instead she wrapped her arms around her daughter once more and gave her a tight hug. She pulled back from her and held Nicole by the shoulders. She looked her right in the eyes and spoke gently “I love you and I am so proud of you.”

 

Nicole nodded quickly and she drew in a deep breath. She reached up to take one of her mother’s hands and squeezed it gently. She lifted the hand to her lips and kissed just once at her knuckles. Then she open her mouth to speak what would be the last words she would say to her mother for a very long time.

 

“I love you.”

 

Waverly had not left Nicole’s side in the hospital. She had been sleeping there. She had been showering in the employee’s locker room area. She had been eating all of her meals from the cafeteria there. It was a good thing she already knew everyone in town because it saved time in having to get to know the staff. Instead everyone just welcomed her and did what they could to make her feel at home.

 

So when the words lifted from Nicole’s lips quietly Waverly was there to hear them. Her eyes went wide and she sat up straight from where she had been laying her head on the mattress next to her hand was holding Nicole’s. She stared at the still lifeless looking Nicole in the bed and mumbled softly “Wh-what?”

 

She kept still, as if any movement would scare Nicole away from speaking again, and stared at her in the bed. She was holding her breath. She could have sworn she had heard her speak and she was waiting to hear it again.

 

When no more words came from Nicole there was a soft sigh of disappointment from Waverly. Her shoulders slumped slightly and she looked back down at where her hand was gripping Nicole’s gently. She lifted it and kissed at her knuckles as a tear dripped from her eye and landed on the sheets of the hospital bed. “Maybe I should get some sleep because I am starting to imagine things.”

 

Just then Nicole’s hand tightened around Waverly’s. It was a light squeeze but it got Waverly’s attention immediately. Nicole had cracked her eyes open and when Waverly looked up at her she gave her a weak smile “You aren’t imagining things.”

 

“Oh-” Waverly stood up quickly. Her mouth dropped open and she stared down at Nicole in shock. That lasted just a moment then her arms wrapped around Nicole the best she could with Nicole being in bed still. “Oh my god! You’re alive!”

 

“And very sore” Nicole whispered softly and lifted her arm in order to wrap it tightly around Waverly. The pain of the sudden hug was worth feeling Waverly against her. She smiled gently and drew in a deep breath. It was a weird sensation to feel her lungs filling with air considering she had just been dead. She liked it, though. She liked knowing she really was alive.

 

“Oh I am so sorry” Waverly pulled away from the hug carefully. She bit her lip and looked down at Nicole with a bit of guilt in her eyes. She felt bad that she had hurt the girl. “You just surprised me. I thought you never going to wake up.”

 

“It’s okay” Nicole reached out for Waverly’s hand. She smiled when the girl took obliged and slid their hands together. Her head gave a nod and she squeezed her hand “Just a little pain. Nothing I can’t handle.”

 

Waverly nodded quickly and wiped at her cheeks a few times to brush away her tears. She sniffled and tried to smile. She did not want Nicole to see she was crying.

 

“Hey” Nicole spoke softly and her hand squeezed Waverly’s again. “Please don’t cry. There’s a good chance I’ll start crying too and that’s just a bad idea.”

 

Waverly laughed very softly at that. She nodded and swiped another tear off her cheek “I’m sorry. I was just so worried. The doctors weren’t sure you would make it.” She choked over the last of her words and gave her head a shake. She was overwhelmed by tears again and she wiped at the new wave of tears falling from her eyes. “You were dead, Nicole.”

 

Nicole frowned slightly and gave her head a nod. Her hand squeezed Waverly’s tightly and she gave a slight pull “Come here.”

 

Waverly didn’t resist. She moved to lean down into Nicole and when she felt the girl’s arms slide around her body she nearly broke down. She never thought she would be in Nicole’s embrace again. Her body trembled as she let herself finally let go the sobs she had been holding back.

 

Nicole’s arms held Waverly tightly as she sobbed. She could only imagine how hard it had been waiting around a hospital constantly worrying you would never get to see someone you cared for again. Her parents had died instantly so she never had to wait around. She was told when she arrived at the hospital that they were gone. That had been hard. But waiting and not knowing had to be even harder. 

 

More time than either of them knew passed and eventually Waverly’s sobs faded. It had turned from Nicole comforting Waverly to the two of them laying together and enjoying the feel of being close to one another. The room was quiet. The only sound was the machines in the room that indicated Nicole was alive. It was comforting, actually. Nicole liked hearing the beep that told her she had a heartbeat again.

 

Waverly eventually lifted her head from where it had come to rest on Nicole’s shoulder. She gave a sheepish smile and wiped a few lingering tears from her cheeks “I’m sorry about that. I have just-”

 

Nicole shook her head quickly “Don’t you dare apologize.” She turned and reached for the box of tissue that was on one of the bedside tables and grabbed it. She offered it to Waverly and gave her a smile “I am sure you’ve been through Hell. How long have I been out?”

 

“A month” Waverly mumbled before she wiped at her nose with one of the tissues.

 

Nicole’s shock was evident on her face as well as the way her heartbeat skipped on the monitor. She blinked and let out a huff of a breath “A month?”

 

Waverly nodded quickly. She drew in a deep breath and shrugged slightly “I haven’t left your side this entire time.”

 

Nicole’s heart fluttered again. She smiled softly and lifted a hand to Waverly’s cheek. She brushed her fingertips along her cheekbone and down her jawline with a loving look on her face “You didn’t have to do that.”

 

“Yes I did” Waverly said seriously. She sat upright a little more but stayed sitting on the bed next to Nicole. “You saved my sister’s life. You didn’t have to do that but you did it without thinking about it.” She smiled and reached for Nicole’s other hand. She gripped it lightly and gave a soft squeeze “I can never repay you for that.”

 

“You don’t have to” Nicole returned the squeeze of Waverly’s hand. Her eyes never left the girl sitting next to her. Her heart skipped a beat again and as the heart monitor beeped to display the irregularity she smirked slightly. The machine was ratting her out. She shook the thought out of her head and spoke a little more seriously “How is she? Wynonna, I mean.”

 

Waverly nodded just once then shrugged just one shoulder “She’s alive. She’s good. She feels really guilty that you sacrificed your life for her.”

 

“She shouldn’t” Nicole spoke softly.

 

“She thinks it’s because of the curse” Waverly mumbled with a shrug.

 

“No, it was what I came here for” Nicole shook her head firmly. “I would do it again in an instant.”

 

Waverly nodded again and smiled very softly. Her hand gave a squeeze to Nicole’s and she let out a soft sigh “I know you would. That is why you are incredible. I am so lucky to have you. My guardian angel.” She lifted Nicole’s hand and kissed at her knuckles with a soft smile on her lips.

 

Nicole’s heart fluttered again. She felt herself tremble slightly and she drew in a deep breath. She smiled as Waverly’s eyes met hers and gave her a nod “I love you.”

 

Waverly felt her own heart skip a beat now. She blinked just once in surprise because that had come out of nowhere. Her lips curled into a slow smile and a sheepish laugh came from her lips “You know, I thought that is what you said when you woke up but I didn’t want to ask just in case I imagined it.”

 

Nicole let out a laugh herself now and shook her head “Well now you know for sure.”

 

Waverly nodded quickly. She leaned down and gently pressed a kiss to Nicole’s lips. The same indescribable spark and energy that had rushed through them the first time they kissed came whirling back in that moment. It took Waverly’s breath away and she had to pull back from the kiss shortly after it started. She bit at her lower lip almost shyly and whispered back to her “I love you, too.”

 

“Yeah I figured” Nicole said with a playful wink. She laughed out softly as her hand came up and she touched again at Waverly’s cheek. She drew in a deep breath and as she exhaled her breath trembled. “I have something to tell you.”

 

“Wow you came back from the dead just chalk full of confessions, didn’t you?” Waverly giggled softly, her nose crinkling playfully as she did so.

 

Nicole gave a half-hearted laugh at that. Her smile faded quickly and she spoke with a very serious tone. “Waverly this is serious.”

 

Waverly’s giggle faded. She looked instantly worried at the way Nicole had turned so seriously so quickly. She bit her lip and tried to hide her own concern and nodded just once “Okay. What is it?”

 

Nicole drew in a deep breath. She was suddenly worried. She had not considered how Waverly would take the news that she was no longer her guardian. What if, for whatever reason, that made Waverly less interested in her? She had not really had the time to think about how Waverly would react.

 

Thankfully she did not have to find out right away. Before she could form the words to tell Waverly the news her hospital door was opened rather roughly. There was a thunk from the door hitting the wall as it was flung open. Standing in the doorway was a very surprised and disheveled looking Wynonna.

 

“Holy shit!” Wynonna looked Nicole over in her hospital bed then hurried over to her quickly. “Hot damn you made it!” She wrapped her arms around the girl and gave her a fiercely tight squeeze. She held her for a few seconds then pulled back and held Nicole by the shoulders. She let out a soft sigh and gave her head a shake “I don’t do mushy shit very well so I’m just gonna say I owe you one and leave it at that, alright?”

 

Nicole gave a single nod and laughed very softly “I can live with that as long as you promise not to hug me that tight again.” She groaned and rubbed a hand over the right side of her torso.

 

“I can totally promise I will never touch you again” Wynonna gave her a playful wink then stepped back from the bed completely. She looked between her sister and Nicole and she smirked just slightly before motioning with her finger between them two of them “Did I interrupt some cutesy moment?”

 

“Yes you-”

 

“It’s fine” Nicole said softly and gave a squeeze of Waverly’s hand as she cut her off. She didn’t mind the company and it gave her some time to think about the consequences that might come from Waverly finding out that she was now a human. Besides she had given up being a guardian for all of eternity and put off seeing her parents again to be with Waverly so the least she could do was get to know her sister as well.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

The next few days were a whirlwind of visitors to the hospital. Nicole was barely alone which meant her and Waverly had not had any alone time. That was alright with her because she still wasn’t too sure how Waverly would take the news that she was now human. She wasn’t sure why but she felt like Waverly might not want to be with her any longer once she found out. It sounded stupid but that didn’t stop her from worrying about it.

She spent any quiet time, usually at night, thinking about it.  She had never really had this type of insecurity about something and she wondered if that was a side effect to being human. Maybe it was the first time she had realized how much she cared for Waverly and the fear of losing her was a side effect that came with that realization. It was the first time she had ever really loved anyone in her entire life. She had given up so much to be with Waverly and maybe she was scared she would be rejected now.

 

It was early the morning of the fourth day after she had woken up and she was laying wide awake again. She wasn’t really sure she liked the fact that she didn’t heal as fast as before because the pain was definitely not helping her sleep either. She was exhausted. Maybe the next time the nurse came by she would ask for some drugs to help her get a little sleep for a while.

 

Just then the door opened and she turned her head to see who it was. With the myriad of visitors and hospital staff that had been coming and going it could literally be anyone. But she definitely did not expect to see the person who had just walked into her room.

 

She sat up in bed and her eyes widened a bit. She put a smile on her face and tried to act casual because even though she was in the hospital and not at work she still felt she needed to impress him “Hey, Nedley.”

 

“I’m sorry to wake you Miss Haught.”

 

“I wasn’t sleeping” Nicole corrected him quickly then motioned to a chair near her bed. “Please have a seat. I’m actually really glad to see you.”

 

Nedley gave the girl a soft smile and nodded as he moved to the chair. He sat down and without any hesitation he cleared his throat and started to speak “How are you feeling?”

 

“Sore” Nicole said with a little nod. She reached for her ribs and rubbed very softly before shrugging a single shoulder “But I am alive.”

 

Nedley nodded and spoke again without much pause “I heard about what happened. You know…” He motioned up toward the ceiling in a vague gesture to indicate Heaven even though they both knew it wasn’t as simple as Heaven and Hell like most people thought. He then waved it off and cleared his throat again “I came to say goodbye.”

 

“Wait, what?” Nicole’s eyes widened in surprise. She gave her head a little shake and her brows creased into a frown “Where are you going?”

 

“Well my job here is done. I mean with you” Nedley motioned to Nicole and shrugged “And here on Earth in general. So I am going to retire as sheriff and take my wife somewhere warm and live the rest of my time here in paradise.”

 

“You’re quitting?” Nicole was upset and it showed on her face. She let out a sigh and shrugged again “But why? Who will be sheriff?”

 

Nedley’s lips curled up into as much of a smile as he could muster and he let out a soft huff of a laugh. He stood up now and put his hand on her shoulder. He gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze “You are, Haught. I am promoting you Sheriff. The lives of the townspeople here are now in your hands.”

 

“What?” Nicole glanced up at him with complete shock in her eyes. She didn’t know what to say. It was everything she had ever wanted. She couldn’t believe this was happening. She shook her head and let out a heavy breath before a smile came to her lips “Really?”

 

Nedley gave a nod and offered her another smile. His hand patted her shoulder a few more times then he stepped away from her “The paperwork will be ready for you to sign in a day or so. Whenever you get out of here everything will be ready to go. Congratulations, Haught. I know you’ll make me proud.”

 

“Thank you” Nicole laughed out softly now as the realization of what she had just heard was setting in. She watched Nedley move toward the door and she nodded quickly “Thank you so much.”

 

“You deserve it” Nedley reached for the door handle and pulled it open.

 

“Wait!” Nicole called to him before he left. When he stopped and looked back at her curiously she gave a quick nod “Enjoy retirement.”

 

Nedley laughed and dipped his hat toward her in a slight nod before stepping out of the room.

 

She waited until the door snapped shut. She then drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly. Then a smile slowly took over her lips. She couldn’t believe it. Even though she had passed up being a guardian for eternity it all seemed to be working out on Earth. She was going to be Sheriff. It was the next best thing. She got the job of her dreams and the most amazing girl in the entire world. She was sure now more than ever that she had made the right decision. She wasn’t scared to tell Waverly she was human any longer. She knew it would be okay. How could it not?

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.


	12. I need you to set me free

In the whirlwind of excitement that followed Nicole being told that she was now Sheriff of Purgatory the fact that she had not told Waverly that she was no longer her guardian had slipped her mind altogether. There was a rush of paperwork that came her way that included accepting the offer for the job, updating and changing protocols for the department, and her preparing to give a speech to all of her officers. She wanted to hold a sort of social mixer for everyone in the station in order to build rapport between them as well as offer a forum for them to start an open dialogue with herself.

 

Waverly had gladly jumped in and offered to help Nicole plan the mixer. She was, after all, the best party planner in the town. In fact she was probably the best everything planner in town but that was neither here nor there. Nicole would have let Waverly take over no matter how good she was at planning events because she was actually super terrible at it. One of her few weaknesses.

 

Between her recovery, planning the mixer, organizing and re-filing every file in the Purgatory Police Department records room, and the few bumps that came with the change of leadership in a job so much time had passed that Nicole had no idea how to naturally bring up the subject of her mortality.

 

She knew that Waverly would be mad. She would be upset that so much time had passed with Nicole not telling her. But they had both gotten so busy, it really had just been a crazy ride, and now Nicole was struggling with how to tell her. 

 

She finally decided that she would cook Waverly a romantic dinner at her apartment and they could have the talk then. She had learned that any bad news was best served on a full stomach. Besides Waverly had helped her pick out such nice kitchen supplies that she might as well put them to actual use. So she picked a day they were both free, spent the day looking for the perfect recipe online, and headed to the store for all the ingredients she needed before she headed to her place to start preparing. She really hoped they wouldn’t fight because fighting with your girlfriend was the worst.

 

That word still made Nicole smile. Girlfriend, to be exact. Somehow in all the madness they had managed to have the talk that defined what they were doing with their relationship. They had agreed that it was a no brainer that they were dating. Waverly said it was kind of cute that Nicole had been so nervous to ask her what they were because it should have been obvious. But what Waverly was coming to find out was that Nicole was not so good with the subtle when it came to cute girls. Unless they flat out said they wanted her she just assumed they were being nice. Waverly thought that was absolutely adorable and spent the rest of that night making sure Nicole had no doubt of her intentions. 

 

Nicole smiled as the memory slid into her mind as she chopped up some vegetables. She had to admit that it was nice to be sharing so much time with Waverly in person instead of dreaming all the scary dreams she had been before. In fact she hadn’t had a single bad dream since waking up in the hospital. She assumed that it was because she was no longer a guardian. It didn’t hurt that Waverly had stayed out of harm’s way since that day too. In fact it had been all around quiet in Purgatory since that day. A few minor traffic violations and noise complaints but for the most part it seemed everyone in town was on their best behavior.

 

The thought made Nicole frown now. That had to be a bad sign, right? Like the calm before the storm. There was no way the entire town would go about their daily lives being law abiding citizens all of the sudden when just a month earlier it was overrun with demons. She couldn’t believe she hadn’t thought about that until now. And now that she had the thought she was worried what it meant.

 

She had just put down her knife and was wiping her hands clean in order to pick up her phone and call Waverly when there was a knock on her door. She perked an eyebrow before looking at the clock on her phone to see what time it was. Waverly wasn’t due for another hour. She wondered who it was at her door. She didn’t get visitors. Everyone left her alone so this was definitely pretty curious for her.

 

She moved slowly to the door and once she was next to it she cleared her throat and tried to make her voice sound a bit deeper to intimidate whoever was on the other side of the door “Who is it?”

 

“It’s Wynonna. Can I come in?”

 

“Oh” Nicole let out a relieved sigh. She realized she had approached the door without her gun so if it had been any sort of threat she would have been in trouble. But since it was a mild threat, because the big sister of your girlfriend is always a mild threat to you, she pulled the door open without hesitation now. She offered Wynonna a soft smile and motioned for her to come into her apartment.

 

“I know you’re having dinner with Waves in a bit so I won’t stay long. I just really needed to talk to you” Wynonna started talking before she was barely through the doorway. She whirled around after a few steps into the apartment and looked at Nicole with a serious look in her eyes. “I’m sure Waverly is gonna be pissed I’m here but at this point I don’t care.”

 

“What’s wrong?” Concern immediately filled Nicole’s face when she saw the same painted on Wynonna’s expression. She shut the door behind her and kept her eyes on the other woman. “Is Waverly alright?”

 

“She’s fine” Wynonna waved off the notion then shrugged “Well at the moment. I don’t know, Haught, she’s been acting kind of weird since you saved my life.”

 

This made Nicole’s heart flutter slightly. She still liked that Wynonna explained it in that way. That she had saved her life. It made Nicole feel good. But that didn’t matter right now. So she refocused and shrugged a single shoulder “Weird how?”

 

“A little reckless, I guess” Wynonna shrugged then let out a sigh. “She kind of acts like she has no regard for her own life. Like no one can touch her. Like she is invincible. Kind of like…” She let out a huffed sound that held a slight laugh behind it before her hand turned to motion at herself “...Kind of like me.”

 

“She looks up to you, Wynonna” Nicole tried to act calm about it when in reality she was pretty upset. Waverly had to be careful especially now. “She wants to prove she’s as tough as you are.”

 

“No it’s not cute and charming like when I do it” Wynonna rolled her eyes. “It really has me worried. It’s like she knows you’re here to protect her so she thinks nothing bad can happen. You know she’s been going out at night alone to fight demons?”

 

“She’s what!” Nicole’s anger rose in her voice all of the sudden. She realized she had yelled and she quickly cleared her throat and gave her head a shake. “What do you mean?”

 

“Just that” Wynonna shrugged again. “She sneaks out after she thinks we’re all asleep. I followed her once. She hunts down demons and sometimes she confronts them and sometimes she just notes where they are and then tells me the next morning as if she figured it out with her big, beautiful brain.”

 

Nicole nodded just once. This was not okay. The last thing she wanted was to have sacrificed her abilities in order to come back and be with Waverly only to have her go and get herself killed. She drew in a breath to steady herself and try to calm down her raging heart before she offered Wynonna a crooked and forced smile “I’m glad you told me.”

 

“I tried to talk to her but she just pushed me away” Wynonna frowned and it was easy to see how hurt she was by that. One of the things she had always loved was that she and Waverly were super close. They were the other person’s shoulder for everything. The thought that Waverly wouldn’t listen now just broke her heart.

 

“I’ll see if I can get through” Nicole nodded quickly before Wynonna could ask it of her. 

 

“Please” Wynonna said very sincerely and it was easy to tell that asking for help was not one of her strong suits.

 

“Don’t worry about it” Nicole offered her a very real though kind of sad smile. “We’re a team and no matter how dysfunctional the lot of us might be we have each other’s back no matter what.”

 

The corner of Wynonna’s lips curled into the slightest hint of a smile. She nodded at Nicole then motioned for the door. “Then I will leave you to it.” She walked to the door and pulled it open. She paused and motioned inside the apartment toward the general area of the kitchen “Enjoy all of that, I guess.”

 

Nicole let out a soft laugh and nodded in agreement. She watched Wynonna go and once the door was closed her smile faded. She let out a heavy sigh and gave her head a shake. She was so furious with Waverly for being so reckless. It was so out of character for her and Nicole could not wait to get to the bottom of it.

 

~.~.~.~.~.~.

 

Nicole managed to keep herself busy with preparing the food as she waited for Waverly to arrive. That didn’t mean her mind was not completely focused on what she was going to say to her girlfriend when she got there. She had definitely practiced her speech several times so she could get it right when the time came.

 

The door to the apartment opened and Nicole whirled around from the stove where she had been finishing the last of the meal. When her eyes fell on Waverly coming through the door she smiled for just a moment. The girl really was completely stunning.

 

“Sorry I am a little late” Waverly greeted Nicole with a smile as she came into the apartment. “But I had to stop and get these!” She motioned to the beautiful bouquet of flowers she had brought in with her and grinned up at Nicole “I saw them and I thought of you.”

 

Nicole’s heart wanted to melt. How could she be mad at such a thoughtful person? She smiled very softly and leaned down to accept the kiss that Waverly offered her in greeting once she drew close enough to her “You are forgiven for your tardiness.”

 

Waverly let out a soft laugh at that then turned and started to go through Nicole’s cupboards in search of the vase that she knew Nicole had. She knew she had one because she had bought her flowers in the hospital and made sure to pick a vase she liked so she could use it in the future. Once she found it she quickly moved to the sink to fill it with water before carefully starting to arrange the flowers in the vase “It smells amazing in here by the way. What did you make for us?”

 

“Okay I can’t do this. I’m not very good with anger and I am angry” Nicole let out a sigh and turned to look at Waverly. She let her backside come to rest against the countertop behind her before folding her arms across her chest.

 

“Angry?” Waverly perked an eyebrow and looked at her curiously. “But you just said I was forgiven for being late.”

 

“Not that” Nicole motioned to the flowers and let out another sigh “I talked to Wynonna earlier. She came to me, actually. She is worried about you and after hearing her reasoning I have to admit I’m pretty worried too.”

 

“Worried?” Waverly bit her lip and turned her eyes now back to the flowers. She did not want to lie to Nicole so maybe if she played like she had no idea what she was talking about she could get away with it “What is Wynonna filling your head with now?”

 

“She said you’re being reckless” Nicole reached out now and gently grabbed one of Waverly’s biceps. She gave a soft squeeze and pulled on the arm until Waverly gave in and turned around. Once their eyes met Nicole dropped her hand away and her head gave a shake “Hunting demons by yourself? What are you thinking, Waves? That is so dangerous. You could get yourself hurt. Even worse you could get yourself killed.”

 

“Do you know how useless I feel sometimes?” Waverly said as her smile faded and was replaced with a frown. “You’re a cop, the sheriff actually, and some sort of powerful guardian angel. Wynonna is the actual living heir of Wyatt and only she has the power to send demons to Hell. Dolls is some sort of fricken lizard man. Doc is the immortal gunslinger with the quickest draw in the world. What does that make me?” She sighed and motioned to herself “I mean I can’t even feel my own pain? How weak am I?”

 

Nicole’s heart almost broke on the spot. The pain she saw in Waverly’s eyes nearly broke her. She had to fight the urge to cry. Instead she stepped up to her girlfriend and gently took hold of her hand “You are not weak, Waves. You are one of the most incredibly strong people I have ever met. You are smart and kind and enthusiastic about everything. You think outside the box and you never accept that there is no answer to a problem. You are the glue, Waverly Earp. You are the binding of this group. Without you none of us would still be here. There would have been a demon you weren’t here to outsmart that came along and destroyed everyone because they weren’t prepared.” The sincerity in her voice was dripping in each word. She could not believe Waverly felt that way.

 

“How do you know that?” Waverly asked weakly. A single tear slid down her cheek and she quickly lifted a hand to wipe it away.

 

“Because I do” Nicole said with a firm nod of her head. “Because I was sent here to protect you. I wasn’t sent here to protect Wynonna or Dolls or anyone else. You were the one that was important enough that the powers above wanted to keep you safe. Not because you are weak but because you have enough strength to lend to everyone else around you in order to make sure the job gets done.” Nicole moved her hand now and gently lifted it to Waverly’s heart. She set it there lightly and a smile came to her lips “This right here is your power. It is what makes you special. It is the reason we are all still here. You live with your heart first and that is something so rare it needs to be cherished.”

 

Waverly drew in a deep breath and lifted her hand to cover where Nicole’s rested on her heart. She wrapped her fingers around the hand tightly and gave a nod as a few more tears streamed down her cheeks “You go and say something like that and I feel silly for ever doubting my place here. How do you do that?”

 

Nicole let out a soft laugh at that. She was glad to see Waverly seemed to be taking her words seriously “My honesty is part of my charm.”

 

“You really do have a lot of charm” Waverly’s hand left Nicole’s hand and lifted to her cheek instead. She cupped her face gently then lifted on her toes to draw their lips together for a gentle kiss. It was tender and it was short but it was not lacking in love. She smiled as the kiss broke and she settled back to her feet. “Thank you. I’m sorry I worried you.”

 

“Well it was mostly Wynonna you worried. I just barely found out” Nicole said with a soft laugh. “I definitely think you need to apologize to your sister as soon as possible.”

 

“I agree” Waverly said with a single nod. “But, later? Because your heartfelt speech kind of set the mood and I don’t wanna ruin it.” She smirked slightly and lifted a single eyebrow suggestively on her forehead.

 

Nicole smirked as well. She rolled her eyes and touched a quick kiss to Waverly’s forehead before stepping away from her and turning back to the stove “Maybe after dinner. I don’t want our food getting cold. Besides…” She turned back to her girlfriend and pointed at her firmly “I want to hear about your solo demon hunting. I want to make sure you didn’t go and piss off the wrong evil being.”

 

Waverly pouted but she understood. Nicole was not one to drop something that was unresolved. So instead of arguing she moved to pull herself up on the kitchen counter, sitting next to where Nicole was working at the stove, and shrugged “I was pretty careful for the most part. None of them knew I was watching them.”

 

“Doesn’t matter” Nicole shook her head, looked into the pot of food she had been stirring, and shrugged. She thought it was done. So she turned off the stove then moved now to fetch some plates “Just promise me one thing?”

 

“Anything” Waverly put a hand to her heart and nodded.

 

“Just be honest with me from now on, okay? I know you hate liars but so do I. I think we should make a pact here and now that we never keep anything from the other again” Nicole turned now with some plates in hand and eyed Waverly firmly as if she were skeptical she would agree.

 

“Totally” Waverly said with a serious nod. “I promise, Nicole. From now on there are no secrets between you and I. Except if I am planning a surprise party for you.”

 

Nicole laughed at that and smiled slightly “That is acceptable.” The two of them shared a silent look that served to seal the promise they had just made to one another. Then in a blink the look was gone. Nicole handed Waverly a plate and motioned for her to go ahead and dish herself some of the food from the stove. She bit her lip and drew in a deep breath “Speaking of no more secrets…”

 

Suddenly it was as if a shockwave moved through Nicole’s apartment. Both girls were tossed against the wall opposite the large front windows as they were blown over by whatever force caused the shockwave. Glass and other broken items littered the apartment from the sudden impact. It looked like a bomb had gone off.

 

Then there was a figure standing near the broken out windows. It’s eyes glowed a deep red and it was over six feet tall. His arm lifted and he pointed at Waverly “You trespassed on sacred ground. Your soul must be given as payment!”

 

Waverly, huddled on the floor under some of the light rubble shook her head and pushed the leg of the coffee table off her stomach. She slowly got to her feet and brushed the dust from herself. She looked at the creature and her eyes widened a little. She recognized it as one of the demons she had been tracking. “I… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to-”

 

“Silence!” The creature lifted it’s hand toward Waverly, tossing an invisible binding over her mouth to make it impossible for her to speak.

 

Nicole groaned from the ground behind Waverly. She had hit her head and been knocked out for a few seconds. Now that she was coming to she could see the creature through blurred vision. She heard it yell that it was here to take what rightfully belonged to it then move slowly toward Waverly. This sprung Nicole into action and though her eyesight was still coming back into focus she was able to move quickly the short distance back to the kitchen area of her apartment.

 

Waverly was frozen both in fear and because of the binding spell the creature seemed to have put on her. All she could do was stare as it slowly floated her way. She couldn’t even scream. She could only watch in horror.

 

“Didn’t anyone ever tell you it’s rude to drop in unannounced?” Nicole shouted from behind the kitchen counter. When the creature turned its focus from Waverly to her she smiled just briefly. She wondered how long she could distract the creature. “But since I am a forgiving person maybe we can make a deal. It seems you think you’re owed something.”

 

“The soul of the one that desecrated the sacred land with her filthy human blood” The creature spoke deeply in a way that somehow vibrated one’s insides. Like tiny shockwaves bursting through your bones. 

 

“Okay, firstly, there is nothing filthy about her blood” Nicole frowned and motioned toward Waverly. “Secondly isn’t that a little….” She thought for a moment about what word she wanted to use then shrugged it off “racist but whatever the word for that between species is? Like just because she is a human you automatically assume she’s filthy and bad? Come on what century do we live in?”

 

“Silence!” The creature yelled again. This time it was unable to move it’s hand toward Nicole to bind her motionless like it had done to Waverly. Instead, Nicole had anticipated it’s movements and thrown the knife she had picked up from the kitchen cabinet at the creature’s arm. She watched as the blade pierced it’s hand causing it to howl in pain and stumble back away from Waverly. 

 

She wasn’t sure how long the creature would be incapacitated. So she hurried over to Waverly and grabbed her by the waist. She looked her in the eyes and asked quickly “Can you walk?”

 

Waverly’s eyes just got wide and she tried to speak but all the was heard was muffled hums. 

 

Nicole nodded before bending down in front of Waverly. She put her shoulder into Waverly’s stomach, bent the girl over her shoulder, then lifted at the knees. With Waverly slung over her shoulder she headed for the door of her apartment. 

 

They didn’t get far before Nicole was blasted from behind by the creature who had recovered from the knife in the hand. The girls tumbled to the ground unable to move. They both somehow landed on their backs but that only served to give them a good view as the creature now moved toward them slowly “I will take both your souls as penance for your actions!” The creature’s hand rose again and Nicole closed her eyes. This was it. This was the end.

 

There was a gunshot out of nowhere. Then a scream. There was a hiss like a fire being extinguished followed by the unmistakable smell of smoke. Nicole opened her eyes and realized she was able to move again. She pushed herself up with her hands so she was leaning her back against the wall behind her but still sitting. Her eyes went wide in surprise “Wynonna? What are you doing here?”

 

“You see…” Wynonna stood tall in the middle of the apartment with a satisfied smirk on her face. She twirled Peacemaker around her finger a few times then stuffed it in her holster. She then looked at Nicole and Waverly on the floor and nodded “I remember Waverly describing one of the demons she had been tracking. I read up on it and realized it was going to come after her. So I’ve been parked outside the apartment since we talked just waiting to see if it would show up tonight.” She looked between the two girls on the ground and shook her head “It’s a good thing I did or you two would be toast.”

 

“Thank you, Wynonna” Nicole said sincerely.

 

“I am so sorry I caused all of this” Waverly frowned as she climbed to her feet. She dusted off then moved to her sister. She gave her a quick hug then pulled back and shook her head “I promise no more solo missions.”

 

“I’m happy to hear that” Wynonna gave her sister a little nudge with her shoulder. She then looked passed her to Nicole still on the floor “And now we’re even. You saved my life, I saved yours, no one owes anyone squat.”

 

“You never owed me-”

 

“Even!” Wynonna cut Nicole off quickly. She would never admit it but she felt indebted to Nicole and probably still would for the rest of her life.

 

“Deal” Nicole said with a humbled smile. She knew Wynonna would deny it but she liked to think the girl had a soft spot in her heart for Nicole now. 

 

“Well it looks like dinner is ruined. You two wanna order some pizza?” Wynonna looked around the trashed apartment then to the girls and gave a shrug “I’ll buy.”

 

“Sounds perfect” Waverly said with a laugh. She turned now and made her way over to Nicole. She reached her hand down to help her off the ground “How’s pizza sound?”

 

When Nicole reached up for Waverly’s hand was when she felt the pain. It was sharp and it shot through her back. She stiffened at the sensation and her breath caught. She let out a groan and reached now for where the pain had originated in her body. Her right hand reached around the left side of her body and there under her shoulder blade there she felt the warm stickiness of blood. Her brow immediately creased and she pulled her hand back and held it in front of her face. When her eyes saw the deep red of the blood she felt herself go cold.

 

“Oh my god you’re hurt” Waverly dropped to her knees and reached to the same spot Nicole had just touched. She felt the blood too and shifted to be able to look behind where Nicole sat. That is when she saw the huge shard of glass sticking out of her back just below the shoulder blade on her left side. Waverly shook her head in confusion and quickly looked back at Nicole in horror “But I didn’t…” She motioned to her own back and blinked a few times “I’m fine.”

 

“This isn’t…” Nicole coughed now and that’s when she saw blood come from her mouth. She drew in a breath, which sent pain through her back and chest, and shook her head. Her hand trembled as she lifted it and looked at the blood on her fingers again. The time was now. “Waverly I’m dying.”

 

“What?” Waverly spoke in breathless shock as she stared at Nicole.

 

“When I saved Wynonna” Nicole’s voice was growing weaker as she spoke. “I was given a choice. Stay dead and run the guardian council or come back to be with you..” She smiled and lifted her hand to touch at Waverly’s cheek. Her touch left bloody fingerprints behind. Her eyes met Wavelry’s scared gaze and she drew in a deep breath “I chose to be with you and I don’t regret that decision. I love you, Waverly Earp.”

 

“What do you mean?” Waverly felt tears welling in her eyes. Her throat burned with a lump of pain that had boiled up from her breaking heart.

 

“She’s human” Wynonna whispered and she dropped to her knees next to Waverly as the realization dawned on her. She blinked a few times and let out a shaky breath “Babygirl she gave it all up for you and now she’s dying.”

 

Nicole nodded at Wynonna. She reached out now and touched at Wynonna’s arm with her left hand. The movement caused pain but it didn’t matter now. Her breathing was starting to be so painful that she knew she couldn’t hold out much longer. The glass had punctured both her heart and left lung. She looked straight into Wynonna’s eyes and spoke as firmly as she could “This isn’t your fault. I made the decision. Please protect her.”

 

Wynonna broke. Tears streamed down her face like a flood and her chin trembled. She took hold of Nicole’s hand and held it tightly between both of hers. “God damn it Haught. I told you if you ever hurt her I would kill you. Can’t you see you’re breaking her heart?”

 

Nicole laughed very weakly at that. Her head gave a single nod to Wynonna “You better do it quick then.” Her eyes then flickered to Waverly’s. She lifted her bloodied hand and again touched her cheek. She shook her head just once and whispered now because that was all the strength she had left. “Break the curse, Waves. Live a long happy life with your sister. I will be watching over you, okay? We will be reunited again.”

 

“No” Waverly cried out softly. Her eyes closed and she leaned forward to gently rest her forehead against Nicole’s. She was trembling as sobs coursed through her body. She let out a few of the sobs softly then spoke again through a groggy voice “Please don’t leave me. I need you.”

 

“I will always be with you” Nicole managed to cough out. Her hand dropped from Waverly’s face and landed just over her heart. She gave the slightest nod against Waverly’s head and used the last of her strength to whisper “Love is strength.” Her hand fell loosely into her lap. Her head fell back. It was a few more weak heartbeats later and her body slumped into the wall behind her. She was gone. Nicole Haught had died to protect Waverly Earp for the final time.

  
  



End file.
